The Three AntiMarauders
by Rincer of Winds
Summary: What if Petunia had been a witch too? Would Snape's past have been different? Surely haveing another friend at Hogwarts would be good for him. Set in the time of the Marauders, AU obviously. Title subject to change in case I actually think of a good one.
1. Chapter 1

I don't own Harry Potter, or any trademarks within.

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A young boy was crouched in a bush, watching two girls playing on a swing set. They were swinging as high as they could, and he watched them with an obvious longing to join them. Anyone who didn't know the young Severus Snape could have easily mistaken his pained longing for friendship for greed.

"Lilly, don't do it!" shrieked the brown-haired girl. It was too late though, and the young girl flew off the swing, laughing proudly as she landed lightly. She turned to her sister, beaming in delight from her flight.

"I'm fine!" Said Lilly. "Hey, Tunney, watch this!" She picked up a flower and Petunia hesitantly peered at it. In a moment, it had begun to open and close its petals rapidly.

"Stop that!"

"It's not going to hurt you." Said Lilly, rolling her eyes. Even so, she stopped, and Petunia relaxed.

"How do you do that?" she asked longingly.

Severus stood, and in a vague attempt to look normal he straightened his cloak. No way would he reveal his ridiculous smock to the girls. "Isn't it obvious?" he drawled.

The girls jumped, and Petunia yelped.

"Isn't what obvious?" Asked Lilly once she realized who had addressed them.

Severus opened his mouth and began to say 'that you're a witch', but choked it off. He didn't want to offend her the first time he ever spoke to her! What came out was, "That you… erm, well… that you can do magic." Lilly raised an eyebrow, and Petunia shrieked. He hurried on, mentally cursing himself for sounding so stupid. "So can I, I'm going to be a wizard next year!"

Petunia sneered at him. "Come on Lilly, let's go home. This boy is obviously crazy."

Severus flushed. "I'm not crazy!"

"Well then you're a freak, and that's worse. Come on Lils, we are leaving!"

The two girls ran off, though Lilly managed to shoot an apologetic grin back at Severus, who was left standing alone, devastated. That was not how he wanted their first conversation to go…

The next day, the girls hesitantly returned to the playground.

"What if that boy is here again?" hissed Petunia, clutching Lilly's arm. "You know, the one who said he was a…" She shuddered, and spat out the next word. "Wizard?"

Lilly grinned at her sister, green eyes sparkling. "Stop worrying! Besides, I kind of like the idea. And you have to admit, it makes sense in a way. How else could I do all these things?"

"There's no such thing as magic!" Yelled Petunia, but Lilly didn't look completely convinced.

They sat on the swings in silence for a time, until Petunia broke the silence with a whispered shriek. "Lilly! It's him!"

Sure enough, Severus was slowly walking down the road to the playground, and as they watched he came through the gates. He looked slightly better today, wearing khaki pants and a black turtleneck sweater that looked suspiciously like it had belonged to his mother at some point. He approached the girls, and brushed his slightly greasy looking black hair out of his face.

"Well if it isn't Mr. Wizard." Said Lilly with a slight smile. "You didn't even bother telling us your name."

"Severus. Severus Snape." He said, examining the ground.

"I'm Lilly Evans. This is Petunia, my sister." She examined him curiously. "Are you really a wizard?"

Severus looked indignant. "Of course I am! And so are you. Well, you're a witch at least. Petunia is a muggle though."

Petunia drew herself to her full height. "And just what is that supposed to mean?"

"You don't have any magical talent." He said, barely concealing a smirk.

Lilly was quick to come to her sister's aid. "There's nothing wrong with that!"

Petunia ignored this, glaring at Severus. Slowly, her eyes widened. "I ran into a boy at school yesterday that everyone always says is really weird. Like, weird stuff happens around him. I didn't bother to apologize, but today my homework was missing right after I did it!" She gasped. "Could he have been a…" She couldn't quite bring herself to say the word though, and instead looked at Severus accusingly.

He shrugged. "Possibly. Accidental magic is commonly used for things like that. Of course, after eleven we can't do magic outside of Hogwarts, but that's only until we reach seventeen."

Petunia looked pained, but curiosity won out over the need to disguise ignorance. "Hogwarts?"

This time Severus didn't bother hiding the sneer. "Hogwarts school of Witchcraft and Wizardry. It's where Lilly and I will go to learn magic."

Lilly had been listening raptly, and finally was unable to remain silent any longer. "You mean I'm really going to learn how to do magic?"

He nodded. "We'll be in school together I think." He added, and continued with a shy smile. "How old are you?"

"I'm ten, I turn eleven January 30th, so in two months."

"Same here." In response to Severus' surprised expression, she added, "Fraternal twins."

He gulped. His parents complained enough about raising one child, what would they do with two at once? "And I do January 9th." He turned to Lilly. "We'll get our Hogwarts letters on our birthdays."

"Why isn't Tuney a witch?" Said Lilly, frowning slightly.

"It doesn't always run in families, so it's possible for one twin to be a witch and one to not. My mom's a witch, but dad's a muggle, and here I am a wizard. It all depends."

"Both my parents are muggles. Will that make a difference? I mean…"

Severus shook his head violently. "Not at all."

"Oh." Said Lilly, visibly relaxing. Behind her, Petunia crossed her arms and rolled her eyes at Severus. "So what's Hogwarts like?" Asked Lilly, clueless to Petunia's resentment.

"I don't really know." Said Severus, looking back at the ground.

"But you said your mom was a witch!"

"She is." He replied, gaze hardening and smile turning glassy. "But she doesn't talk to me much. Neither does dad."

"I'm sorry." Said Lilly, and Petunia's gaze softened a little.

"It's no big deal." He lied easily, shrugging as he did.

Lilly searched her mind, determined to find a new topic. Before she could think of anything, Petunia cut in. "Er, do you two want to get on the swings or something? I'm getting tired of standing."

They quickly agreed, and headed for the swing set. Lilly broke out into a run, and Petunia and Severus sped up to match paces with her. Petunia took the rightmost sing, jumping smoothly into it. Lilly ran past the middle swing, grabbing the chain so she spun around with it, red hair flying out and smacking Severus in the face as he calmly seated himself in the left swing.

Laughing wildly at the disgruntled look on his face, Petunia began to swing as Lilly gasped out an apology through her own mirth. He rolled his eyes and accepted the apology, and then whipped his head so his own shoulder-length hair flew out in imitation of Lilly's. This caused the two girls to fall off their swings with shouts of laughter.

When the calmed down he put on his best innocently puzzled smile, and asked, "What?"

They giggled hysterically, and after a minute he joined them, looking rather pleased with himself for making them laugh.

"You looked just like her!" Panted Petunia after they finally calmed down.

"Hey!" Cried Lilly, looking insulted. "You seem to forget that I have red hair, which is obviously better for whipping."

They looked at her seriously for a moment, thinking this over, before they collapsed with laughter again.

Severus allowed himself to bask in the feeling of acceptance, which was so rare for him. It seemed that Lilly liked him, which felt wonderful. He wasn't sure Petunia would ever like him very much since he had magic, but she wasn't glaring daggers at him anymore. He decided to take another risk. "True, but I think he can all agree that black hair is at least better than brown."

Petunia narrowed her eyes at him, and flicked her head. Severus found himself with yet another face-full of hair, and watched Petunia and Lilly giggle with a smirk that bordered on a smile.

Absent-mindedly, Lilly picked up a flower and began to make it open and close. When Petunia noticed the smile slipped off her face, and she began to glare at Severus again.

Lilly stopped suddenly, and over her shoulder at a house. She stood with a groan, and motioned to her sister. "C'mon Petunia, mom's calling."

"Goodbye Severus." Said Petunia with the hint of a sneer.

"Bye Sev!" Called Lilly, and he waved goodbye to them as they marched off.

He turned to leave, and allowed himself a triumphant smile. He thought, for the first time in his life, that he had just made a friend. Maybe even two.

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I ask for your forgiveness for making Lilly and Petunia fraternal twins, it was the only way I could have them born close enough to eachother to be in the same year! I won't make a big plot device out of it, and it should only be mentioned once or twice more, and that's only if they have a birthday party. I also mad them all ten, turning eleven soon, for plot purposes.

I chose to make them act slightly silly, because that's how ten year old girls act, and most ten year old boys too. I know Snape would be a bit more reserved, but since he's trying so hard to get Lilly's friendship he would act more friendly. Petunia and Sev will never be best friends, but she will tolerate him, especially since he's smart enough to not just talk about wizardly things around her. J.K. is a great author, but Snape would have been smart enough to not make an enemy out of Lilly's sister in my opinion.

If there are any discrepancies I haven't explained that you would like me too, or any comments/plot ideas please drop a review and I'll attend to it immediatly! Thank you for reading.


	2. Chapter 2

**I don't own Harry Potter, or anything in the Potterverse. *sigh***

Severus sat at the edge of the woods that stretched out across the back of the playground, methodically ripping handfuls of leaves into shreds, staring out into space. As he sat there, Petunia and Lilly entered the playground. Lilly was eager to hear more stories of magic, and her sister had reluctantly allowed herself to be dragged along. Upon spotting Severus, they grinned at each other. Without saying a word, a plan came to both of their minds, and they nodded at each other to seal the deal. They darted into the woods before they came into his line of sight, and split up.

Petunia ran along as quickly as she could without making a sound. Lilly had often made her play spy in the forest, and years of stalking one another throughout the forest had made things like this easy. She turned, and saw a flash of red as Lilly jumped over a log on the ground, landing into a silent crouch. Soon they came to the tree that Severus was slouched against, and made eye contact.

'One.' Mouthed Lilly.

'Two.' Petunia mouthed back, a mischievous glint in her eyes.

'Three.' They whirled around the tree, grabbing Severus.

He let out a yelp worthy of Petunia, and broke free of their grasp. Whirling around, he cried out. "I'm sorry! I-" He broke off when he saw the two confused girls and stared at the ground, still trembling.

"Sev?" Asked Lilly, frowning worriedly. "Are you allright?"

He brushed himself off, causing a shower of leave bits to fall. "Yeah, I thought you were…" He caught himself again. "Yeah, I'm fine."

They still seemed concerned, but to his intense relief they dropped the subject. Lilly giggled. "Hey look Sev, we match!"

Sure enough, when he looked at her closer he saw that they were wearing the same dark green sweater. He flushed, and let out an audible groan. If only he wasn't stuck with his parents hand-me-downs!

"Accidentally picked up your Mom's shirt instead of yours?" Asked Petunia with a smirk.

"Well…"

"Oh lay off him Tuney, I think it suits him." Said Lilly, smiling at Severus.

He muttered thanks, but even as he did so he smiled back. Petunia rolled her eyes at this, and flopped cross-legged onto the grass. The other two followed suit, and Severus cleared away his leaf shreds with a hurried motion.

Lilly leaned back against a tree and stared up at the sky. "So you really can't tell me _anything_ about Hogwarts?"

Severus saw Petunia stiffen out of the corner of his eye, but chose to ignore it. "Well, not much. I don't know who the Professors are or anything."

"But do you know what they Profess?" Asked Lilly hopefully. Severus raised an eyebrow, and Petunia snickered in spite of herself. "Er, I mean what they teach." Said Lilly, chagrined.

"Well, I know we'll take some classes without a doubt, but there are some optional." Severus allowed himself to relax against a tree of his own, and continued with a thoughtful expression. "I've managed to sneak some of my mom's old textbooks, and one of them was a history of Hogwarts. It was boring, but I learned some stuff."

Lilly looked at him, giving him her full attention."What classes?" She asked eagerly.

"There's History of Magic, Transfiguration, Charms, Potions, and Defense Against the Dark Arts. You'll take those for sure."

"Dark Arts?" Asked Petunia, curiosity once more getting the better of her.

"Yes, that's the wizards that use magic for awful things. Most of them are in Azkaban- the wizarding prison- but some are out and following someone that the wizarding world calls 'He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named', or 'You-Know-Who'. It's probably all going to die down in a few years though. Anyway, the class is mostly just defensive and offensive spells, so it's probably going to be the most fun."

Lilly looked unsure. "Potions sounds good too. And Transfiguration, and Charms…"

Petunia had her now-familiar sour look that she seemed to always get when magic was brought up, but added, "I think Defense would be the most interesting though. I mean, what could you do in a class called Transfiguration? Change cats into teapots?" The two girls burst out laughing at this, while Severus smirked knowingly. He had skimmed the Transfiguration textbook, and had seen that spell in the later chapters.

Petunia continued. "And charms sounds like some boring class where you learn manners. As for Potions, well that might be allright." She had begun to smile as she fantasized about magic, but her face fell as she realized what she was doing. "Not that it will matter to me at all."

Lilly chattered on with Severus, not noticing her sister's exclusion. Severus tried giving Petunia an apologetic smile, but she sneered at him and refused to make eye contact with him again.

By the time they had to go home, Lilly had grilled Severus for all he knew about Hogwarts and anything related. She'd made him promise to bring her the copy of Hogwarts a History even after he told her how outdated it was likely to be, and Petunia had grown more and more discontent with each minute. She had looked relived when their parents had called for them to come home, and they ran off calling goodbyes over their shoulders.

Severus watched them go again, and the set his shoulders with a resigned sigh. It was time to go home and face whatever it was that that man had done to his mother now.

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A much shorter chapter than last time, but I'm halfway done with the next one, which is much longer! Thank you for your reviews, and I hope you enjoy this chapter.


	3. Chapter 3

**I'm not JK, I don't own.**

The next two days flew by for Severus, he managed to speak with the girls at least for a half hour each day. The playground became his escape from home, and he enjoyed every moment there. Petunia had warmed up to him a little, though any mention of magic caused her to separate herself a little. He was a bit worried about that to tell the truth. He liked Lilly more, but Petunia was her sister after all. Mulling this over, he pushed open the gate to the playground, dropping a satchel as he did so. He paused when he looked up and saw who was waiting for him. Petunia sat on the swing set alone, with no Lilly in sight.

She looked up, and motioned for him to come. As soon as he was within hearing range, she called out to him. "Hey Sev. Lilly's home finishing up her homework, she wanted me to tell you she'd be late."

Severus nodded, seating himself in his usual swing. "Okay."

They sat in an awkward silence for a while, Severus taking the time to classify the flowers in the playground. He had just gotten to daisy (juices thought to bring luck when stewed overnight, have been rumored to increase potency of Felix Felcis to a slight degree) when Petunia spoke.

"What did you just say?" In response to his puzzled expression, she continued. "You said something that sounded like Felix."

Severus looked sheepish. "I was reading Mom's old potions book yesterday, it had a list of things common flowers like daisies are good for. I was just testing myself."

"Oh." The silence resumed until Petunia burst out, "It's not fair!" She clapped a hand over her mouth, but it was too late.

"What?" Asked Severus, jolted once more out of his classifying. "What's not fair?"

"Why can't I be a witch?" Why does Lilly get to be the one with magic? What makes her so special?" Her voice rose in pitch as she threw questions at him. "It's not fair!" She jumped to her feet and began to run toward the woods, but not before he saw the tears in her eyes.

Muttering insults under his breath, Severus chased after her. After all, he thought, what would Lilly say if he didn't? When he finally caught up with her, she glared at him.

"Go away! I didn't want you to follow me!"

Panting slightly, he shook his head. "You know how guilty Lilly would feel if she heard you say that."

"Guilty? Guilty? You've seen how she flaunts it! Her-" she spit out the word as if it tasted foul. "Magic!"

Severus looked at her, mouth agape. Just what did one do in these situations? Not for the first time he wished that he had friendships to base things off.

Petunia mistook his look of confusion for one of his trademark sneers, and snapped. "And you! You side with her! If it weren't for her you wouldn't even bother coming to play with us! Just like everyone at school! Not that I'd care." She sneered.

Severus glared. "Just because you're a jealous brat doesn't mean everyone is! Blaming Lilly for her magic, when you know she can't help it!" He regretted it even as it was coming out of his mouth, but he continued glaring at her all the same.

Petunia looked like he'd slapped her. "Go away! Just… Just go away you freak!"

The tree branch above Severus' head gave a loud crack and fell, hitting him on the head. Petunia stared at it in horror, and spun on her heel. Shrieking, she fled back to the playground.

He watched her go, rubbing his head gingerly. He felt rather light-headed. When he pulled his hand away, he didn't see blood to his surprise. He sunk to the ground, and realized that the world was fading to black. As he blacked out, he thought he could hear Lilly's voice accompanied by hurried footsteps. "What do you mean he's hurt? How could a branch just fall?"

* * *

Severus blinked, and groaned. Why did his head hurt? He heard Petunia yell.

"Lilly! Lilly, he's awake!"

"Oh thank goodness!"

He closed his eyes again, and felt himself being propped up against a tree. "Lilly? Petunia?"

The girls in question poked him. "Open your eyes Sev!"

He did so, and saw them hovering over him worriedly. "What happened?"

Lilly shrugged, and Petunia said, "A branch fell and hit you! You must have awful luck to have been standing under it." All traces of anger were gone from her face, and Severus was grateful for that. He didn't know how she'd react to the conclusion he had come to about the branch.

"Tuney said it just fell with a huge crack! What if it had been a bigger branch? You need to be more careful next time Sev." Said Lilly reproachfully.

Severus groaned. "Yes, I'll be careful the next time I anger a witch."

Petunia glared. "That's not a very nice thing to…" She stopped. "Witch?"

He nodded. "Well how else can you explain that?"

Lilly shook her head. "Tuney's not a witch, she hasn't ever done magic!" Petunia sat behind her, looking utterly shocked.

"Some people are late bloomers. And what just happened is accidental magic, there's no way it wasn't." He grimaced. "I have a bump on my head to prove it."

Petunia's shocked expression slowly changed to glee, and then to delight. "Do you mean it?" At his nod, she squealed and seized him in a hug. "I'm so sorry! You were right, I was being a brat, but now I'm one too!" She stood, and turned to her sister, laughing. "I'm a freak too!"

Lilly looked affronted, but Severus just laughed. "And there goes your favorite insult Tuney." He said with a smirk.

She rolled her eyes at him, but continued her celebration, spinning in circles laughing. Lilly laughed at her excitement, and stood to join her. They grabbed hands, and turned to Severus. "Come on!" He stood, puzzled, and they seized his hands. Quickly, they spun in a circle, faster and faster until Severus tripped over his own feet and fell, pulling the girls down with him.

They lay in a tangled heap, laughing, until Severus sat up. He began to disentangle himself from the still-giggling girls, and rubbed his head ruefully.

Petunia chuckled, and when the other two looked at her curiously she grinned. "I was just thinking that with the two of us being witches mom and dad are going to have a heart attack when they find out." Severus noted that she had no hesitation about saying witch or magic now.

"You're right, we're going to need to tell them soon." Said Lilly. She looked at Severus. "Will you come with us?"

Severus looked startled. "Me? Why?"

Lilly shrugged. "I was going to wait for my Hogwarts letter to break it to them, but I think we should give them some time to adjust to the idea before an owl comes tapping on the window. Since you know so much more about the wizarding world than we do, you should come explain!"

"You know almost as much as I do by now." Severus pointed out.

"Yes, but you're our friend!" Lilly explained, looking exasperated.

Petunia added added in a whisper, "Just forget everything I said before, okay? I was angry, and I… I'm sorry."

Severus smiled at her in what he hoped was a reassuring way. "It's no problem." He stuck out his hand. "Friends?"

She sneered at him, though her eyes smiled. "Friends." She said, shaking his hand.

Lilly, who had been watching the exchange with interest swept the two up into a group hug. Severus and Petunia exchanged looks of discomfort, but hugged back reluctantly. "And we'll all be in Hogwarts together! I hope we'll be in the same house!"

Petunia nodded. "What are the houses again? I wasn't really listening last time."

"Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin." Said Lilly proudly.

"Gryffindor is for the brave, Hufflepuff the loyal, Ravenclaw the smart, and Slytherin the cunning. I'll probably be in Slytherin like my mom." Said Severus, smirking a little. "But each house has it's good and bad points from what I can tell."

Petunia nodded. "I'd like to be in Ravenclaw or Slytherin I think."

Lilly shook her head. "Not Ravenclaw, that sounds like too much pressure to be smart. And being loyal is all good and nice, but I'd rather be in Gryffindor or Slytherin."

"Well, we'll see in ten months." Said Severus.

"I can't wait that long!" Cried the girls in unison.

"We'll get to go to Diagon Alley over the summer, that's only seven months." Said Severus, hiding a smile.

"Still too long." Said Lilly, crossing her arms with a pout.

"Oh! I almost forgot!" He stood, and jogged to the gate. He returned in a few moments, clutching a satchel in his hand. "I snuck some of the textbooks out of the house."

The girls fell upon them with cries of delight, Petunia still thrilled to be a part of anything magical.

Severus watched as Lilly snapped up Hogwarts A History, a silly grin stealing over his face as he saw how excited it made her. Petunia settled for a DADA book, running her hand down the leather spine reverently. He picked up the potions book he had been reading the previous night, and they settled against trees to read.

After a minute of silence, Lilly looked up. "Will you bring these back every day?"

Severus nodded, lost in a world of potions.

"Lilly! Petunia! Lunch is ready!" called a voice from a nearby house.

"That's us." Said Lilly, standing. "Do you want to come with us? You could help us break the news."

Severus nodded hesitantly. "I guess we might as well."

The three children stood, and Severus followed the girls toward their house.

* * *

I usually won't update this quickly, but I'm going to have a heck of a busy week ahead of me starting tomorrow. I'll write as much as I can, but I can't promise an update until Thursday at the earliest. I hope this chapter was sufficiently long to make up for yesterday's being so short. Thank you for your reviews, and I hope that Petunia's magic coming to light was interesting. Oh, I got a review from 'Alex' I couldn't reply to, and I wanted to say that I loved your idea! And yes, I bumped things up a year from when they met in canon because I wanted Petunia to discover her magic fairly late in the game, and I couldn't string the poor girl along for a year.

As always, thank you for reading.


	4. Chapter 4

I'm so sorry for the long wait, mmy schedule was much worse than I anticipated! Next chappie should be up in a couple of days. Thank you to reviewers Alex and Kat, it means a lot. Alex, your opion is always apreciated, you've brought up several interesting points!

* * *

They traisped down the street, Severus trailing behind nervously. Seeing this, the girls slowed to match paces with him.

"What's wrong Sev?" Asked Lily.

He looked embarrassed, scanning the houses and walking stiffly. "Nothing." They passed a house with a large fountain in the garden, and he kept his eyes on it as they walked by.

"Sev..." Said Petunia worriedly.

"Nothing, really!" He saw their expressions and sighed. "Sorry. It's just that… none of the houses in my neighborhood are like this. This pretty."

Lily grinned. "Thanks! But why not?" Severus shook his head, and she shrugged. "I guess people like different things. C'mon!" She called, speeding up once more.

Petunia hung back with Severus. "Where do you live?"

"Spinners End." He said, looking like the words tasted foul.

"Oh." She said, shooting him a look.

He bristled, and a sneer crept onto his face. "There's nothing wrong with it."

"Really?" Petunia seemed surprised, almost disappointed. "But I always heard that Spinners End was-"

"We're here!" Lily said, skipping over to them. "Oh gosh, am I excited! Mom and Dad are going to find out!" She took hold of Severus' arm, and he smiled happily at her.

Looking up, Severus examined the brick house before him. It was two stories he noted, and the garden was huge. The porch had an old swinging chair on it, and they clambered up the two steps leading to it. A dog barked at them from the backyard, and the two girls groaned. "Hush Dusty!" They yelled in unison.

Severus fidgeted, feeling ridiculously out of place. The whole idea suddenly seemed very silly to him. Just as he opened his mouth to make an excuse and leave, the door swung open.

"There you two are!" Said the cheerful woman who stood in the doorway. "And who might this be?"

Severus looked at her. Her brown hair was hanging loosely, and he saw Lily's green eyes peering from behind it. She wiped floury hands off on the apron tied around her waist, and smiled at him.

"I'm Severus." He said quietly, breaking eye contact and looking down. "Severus Snape."

"Well it's nice to meet you Severus! You must be the boy Lily and Petunia have been talking about."

He looked up again, clearly startled. "Nice to meet you too Mrs. Evans."

"Can he stay for lunch Mom?" Asked Lily.

"Of course he can! Come in, come in." She stepped inside, and motioned for them to follow. "Lunch is almost ready."

"Can we show Sev our room?" Asked Petunia, closing the door behind her.

"As long as you leave the door open."

The girls rolled their eyes. "Yes mom."

Petunia sprinted up the stairs, taking them two at a time. Severus and Lily followed at a quick pace, but she beat them easily. When they came to the top of the carpeted steps, she turned to face them.

"What took you so long?"

Severus just shook his head, and Lily glared playfully. "Just because you made the track team..."

"First race is next week!" Said Petunia happily. "Anyway, let's go in."

They walked through the doorway, and Severus scanned the room.

A bunk bed was tucked into a corner, the foot of the bed nearly touching the windowsill. The walls were decorated with flowers, and the one made bed boasted blankets with a matching pattern. Petunia hopped onto the made bed, and Lily scrambled up to the top bunk. Severus sat on the reading chair opposite the bed, and looked around some more.

"It's very… floral." He said at last.

Lily made a face. "Mom decided to make it fit our names." She picked up a book lying on her bed, and began to flip through it quietly, searching for her place Severus presumed.

"It's horrid." Said Petunia. "And put the book down Lils, we have a guest."

Lily sighed, and tossed the book back onto the bed. She picked up her pillow, and swung it beneath her bed toward Petunia's head.

"Hey!" She ducked and squealed, and Severus chuckled.

He waited for them to stop bickering, and attempted to continue the conversation.

"So you don't like the flowers you're named after?"

They shook their heads.

"After years of getting Petunia themed gifts you get sick of it." Petunia explained, while Lily nodded emphatically. "I actually like roses, but everyone gets me Petunias!"

"I like Daisies, and no one even thinks of those for me." Lily added.

"So what's your favorite color?" Asked Petunia, looking at Severus.

"It used to be black, but green's good too." He accidentally made eye contact with Lily at this point, and looked away quickly.

"Mine's blue." Lily said.

"Yellow." Chimed in Petunia.

Severus snickered, and quickly explained before he was bombarded with questions. "Yellow, blue, and green. All Hogwarts house colours. Yellow and black are Hufflepuff, blue and bronze are Ravenclaw, and green and silver are Slytherin. I guess no one likes Gryffindor, red and gold."

Lily made a face. "Who would like Gryffindor? They're known for being heros. If all people can say about you is that you rush into things without thinking, that's not good."

Severus grinned at that. "Personally I'd like Slytherin. Known for being cunning, ambitious, and resourceful. That's something I could respect."

Petunia sighed. "I don't know… Slytherin seems okay, but you said that mostly purebloods get sorted into it. I guess Ravenclaw would be good, intelligence and wit, right?" Severus nodded.

"Oh I just can't wait!" cried Lily, throwing her pillow in the air. "How much longer until we can go shopping?"

"We'll go sometime during summer break." Petunia said, rolling her eyes. "Do you think you'll be able to come with us Severus?"

"I don't know… My parents probably won't care, so it's a safe bet."

Lily nodded. "So anyway, we will get the same house when we're sorted, right?"

"Right." Said Petunia. "I'm not facing a school of magic without you guys helping me."

"Hopefully. But we won't know until then." Severus added.

"Yeah…." Lily trailed off. "Hey, Tuney, what's for lunch anyway?"

Petunia wrinkled her nose, trying to remember. "Ah… Chocolate chip cookies obviously, I could smell them the second we walked in. As for actual food? Probably ham and cheese sandwiches again."

"Ugh, that'd be like the millionth time! Doesn't she realize we take those every day for lunch at school?"

"You take those you mean. I alternate between peanut butter and jelly and that."

"Big difference."

"There is! You get sweet one day and savory the next! And you always take the same chips and candy too!"

"It's not my fault I have favorites!"

Severus watched the exchange with fascination. No one in his family could converse this easily, arguing in such a teasing way. He hadn't seen anything like it, and he promised himself that one day he would be a part of something like this.

Even as he thought that, Petunia looked at him. "Don't you agree with me Sev? Obviously alternating is the smart thing to do in this case!"

He held out his hands in helplessness. "I'm homeschooled, don't look at me."

"Lucky!" exclaimed Lily. "Then you could eat whatever for lunch! I'm so tired of brown bag lunches. Do we do that at Hogwarts?"

"No, the House-elves make three meals a day, we eat lots of different things."

Petunia nodded. "Good, then Miss 'I'm tired of sandwiches' will stop complaining."

"But it's _months_ until then!" Groaned Lily, as Petunia laughed.

Just then, they heard Mrs. Evans voice from downstairs. "Children, it's time to eat!"

Petunia leapt out of her bed, and Lily slid down the ladder to hers. Severus stood, and once again trailed behind as they stampeded down the stairs, shrieking with laughter.

Mrs. Evans was placing the last of three plates on the table, along with a platter of cookies and three glasses of milk. "Now then, they're fresh out of the oven, so they might be a little hot."

Petunia sat down, and shot Lily a pitying look. "Ham and cheese sandwiches, your favorite Lils!"

Lily sat down with a groan, and the three began to eat.


	5. Chapter 5

Okay, my last chapter was posted in a hurry since I realized I was running several days late, so I'd like to apologize for some discrepancies that reviewer Alex (as always, thank you for your ideas and critisisms) found. Yes, I American (not only am I american, I'm Texan, I keep having to resist typing "Y'all" when the character says "you all"!), and when I realized that I really had no idea what children ate for lunch in Britan now, let alone in 1970, I decided to just go with what I knew and try not to insert any more unnessicary Americanisms. I hope none of you are terribly upset with me! And D-man23, I like the books more than the movies, but when I realized belatedly that I had gone by the movie description I just decided to stick with it.

**Harry Potter, and any trademarks therein do not belong to me.**

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**A/N:** One more thing before I let you read the next chapter in peace- The question of which house Severus and the girls will be sorted into. I haven't plotted the story out in more than a vauge plan, and am happy to alter things like houses. Do any of you have preferences? Just drop a review/message me saying whether you think the girls should go into Gryffindor and Severus into Slytherin, split them all up, if Sev should argue his way into following the girls, etc. If you have time please explain your reasons! If any one result gets more "votes" I'll proably go with it, and if only a few people bother to or if there is no clear winner I'll just go with what makes the most sense to me. Please resopnd, your opinions are much appreciated!

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Severus sat, and quickly began to eat. Lily scarfed down her sandwich, and began looking through the cookies. Petunia ate at the same pace as Severus, and they finished as Lily seized a cookie from the platter. They nibbled at their cookies, exchanging idle conversation as they did.

Finally, Mrs. Evans re-entered. "So do you three have anything fun planned for today?"

Lily and Petunia made eye contact, and nodded at Severus.

"Mom…" began Lily.

"We have something we need to tell you…" Continued Petunia, examining the table carefully.

"You see, Lily and Petunia are…" Severus said, continuing for all the world as if they had rehearsed this.

"Witches." They all finished together, and grinned slightly when they realized they had spoken in unison.

Mrs. Evans blinked, and then smiled. "That sounds like a wonderful game! You must be just as creative as my girls Severus. In fact, I heard them talking about a 'wizarding school' yesterday!"

Lily shook her head. "No mom, we're not playing!"

The woman smiled, and gave her daughter a one-armed hug. "Come now Lily, there's no such thing as magic."

"But-" the girl began, frustration evident in her voice.

Severus interrupted what he was sure was a hopeless effort. "Petunia? Will you get a flower?"

Quickly Petunia ran to the kitchen, returning with a flower from the vase on the counter. "Here Lily, prove it to her!" She said, thrusting the flower at her sister.

Understanding dawned on Lily, and she grinned. "Sev, you're brilliant!" She turned to her mom. "Sev's a wizard, he'll be going to the wizarding school with Tuney and me."

Mrs. Evans shook her head. "This is a fine game, but you must know it's just a…" She trailed off, staring open-mouthed at the flower in her daughter's hand.

Lily was staring at the flower, face a mask of concentration as she made it open and close rapidly.

"Lily?" Mrs. Evans asked, voice quivering. "How are you…"

"Magic mom, magic."

Severus watched the parade of expressions cross the woman's face with interest. First came shock, followed closely by disbelief. He thought he saw curiosity and hope for a moment, but soon disbelief showed once more. Sighing to himself, he decided it was time to show off. He had been saving it to surprise Lily and Petunia, but desperate times… He drew a vial from the inner folds of his coat, and began to speak.

"I was going to show this to you two later, but I think you need to see this Mrs. Evans." He placed it on the table, and smirked as the two girls admired the pure green liquid within. "I made this last night, dad was out so I got to sneak down to the cellar." He waved his hand at the bottle, and the stopper flew off, hitting Petunia on the forehead.

"Hey, watch it Sev!" She cried, laughing even as she glared at him.

Severus smirked. "Consider that payback for the branch you made fall on me. Your first accidental magic and it just _had_ to be something powerful and something that would hurt me, right?" She stuck her tongue out at him, while Lily covered her mouth with a hand to keep from laughing. He took a small sip of the potion, and grimaced.

"What does it do Sev?" Asked Lily, picking up the vial herself. She sipped it, and made a face.

"Hair changing tonic. I chose it because it was my first potion, and this one is supposed to be harmless if made wrong. If I made it right it should-"

Mrs. Evans cut him off with a gasp. "Your hair!"

"Ah, so it works." He looked at Lily, and laughed. "Green's such a nice change from the flaming red Lils."

Lily, who was too busy laughing at him to retaliate, doubled over, holding her sides and gasping for breath.

"Ugh! Why won't you _come here?_!" Cried Petunia, who had been waving a hand at the vial. At her words, it sprang into her hand, and she beamed. "Go away!" It obeyed, almost spilling its contents as it flew away. "Come!" It returned, and she gulped down a mouthful. "Yuck. You want some mom?"

The woman shook her head slowly. "How… Are you really…"

"Witches? Yes mom."

"And wizards!" Added Lily, beaming at Severus. "Sev's mom is a witch, so he knows all about magic and Hogwarts. I will-We will-be going to a magical school until we're 17! We'll learn all kinds of things."

Mrs. Evans nodded. "I belive you... but this is going to take a while to get used to…"

The front door slammed. "Honey! I'm home! Where are my girls?"

"And your father will defiantly take some convincing." She concluded, straightening her dress and untying the apron around her waist as the girls chattered excitedly.

Footsteps sounded in the hallway, and a man Severus presumed was the girls' father stuck his head into the breakfast room. He was well dressed and had red hair much like Lily's, though it was considerably shorter of course. "So this is where you're hiding!" He paused, taking in the scene before him.

Lily was spinning around, laughing as _green _hair swirled around instead of her usual red. Petunia was smiling and yelling orders at a bottle, which seemed to be _listening_ since it was flying into her hand and away repeatedly. A young boy he didn't recognize boasted hair a darker green that Lily's, and was smirking as he talked to Mrs. Evans. Even as the shocked Mr. Evans stood watching, Petunia's hair turned green and the boy's began to darken to black.

He spoke. "Hello everyone!"

The girls looked up, and smiled. "Hello dad!"

Mrs. Evans smiled warily. "Hello John."

The boy looked up, and nodded his head. "It's nice to meet you Mr. Evans, I'm Severus Snape."

Mr. Evans smiled broadly. Something he understood! "Ah, so you're the boy Lily and Petunia have been talking about!"

Severus looked surprised. Both Mr. and Mrs. Evans had known him from the girl's stories! Had they really talked about him that much? A warm feeling grew inside him, and he sternly told it to go away. He hadn't had any true friends before; he couldn't afford to become too affectionate. Ignoring his wishes, the comforting feeling of being liked stayed.

Clueless to Severus' mental struggle, Lily beamed and decided to take the abrupt approach with her father since it had worked on her mother . "Sev's_ really_ clever dad! Look, he made his first potion today, and he doesn't even have a _wand_ yet!"

Mr. Evans looked to his wife for help. "Potion? Wand?" She shrugged, and mouthed "I was surprised too". He rallied though, and tried again. "Does this have something to do with that game you two have been playing? The one where you're wizards?"

Petunia rolled her eyes. "Severus is a wizard dad, Lily and I are _witches_."

"And it's not a game!" added Lily, shaking her head reproachfully. As she did, her hair returned to red and she frowned at it. "Can I have some more of the potion Sev?"

"Yeah, it should be perfectly safe." He said, and turned to the vial, waving his hand at it. When it didn't work, he frowned at tried again.

"It helps if you say it out loud." Remarked Petunia, watching with mild interest.

"Go." He drawled at the vial, waving his hand once more. To his delight it went straight to Lily, and she caught it in her hand.

"You're getting good Severus!" Lily said, smiling at him.

"Thanks Lily. You know, in one of the Hogwarts books I took from mom it said that not many children have control over their accidental magic. Think they were lying?"

"No, we're probably just super powerful." Said Petunia, grinning at her fellow magic users.

Mr. Evans, who was feeling a bit lost, cleared his throat. "What exactly is going on?"

Lily and Petunia winced, and turned to face him. "Erm, we're kinda…"

"Witches." Finished Severus, and they shot him looks of gratitude.

He smiled back reassuringly, remembering that once when describing their dad Petunia had said he was _"Really nice, and you can talk to him about anything. The problem is getting past the part where he makes fun of you… he means it a teasing way, it just doesn't always work…"_

Mr. Evans did indeed mock them at first, and Severus winced as he went along with their explanation, though he clearly still thought it was a game. Finally after many frustrating explanations, Mrs. Evans took control.

"John, you've seen it yourself. Petunia and Severus have conjured that bottle-" at this Severus had kept himself from shouting 'Vial! It's called a vial!' "-back and forth countless times. Lily has done her… flower trick over and over, and their hair must have changed a half a dozen times each. They're not joking John."

He argued with her some, and after another patient explanation he seemed to understand.

"Do you mean it? I mean… is it real?" He asked, almost looking like he wanted the answer to be no.

"Yes dad, it's real." Lily said, trying not to roll her eyes at how stubborn he was being.

"Ah. Well then, who's ready for lunch? You three can explain it all to us as we eat."

"We already ate." Answered Petunia, though she shot the cookies a meaningful look.

"Well then, you'll just have to finish off those cookies!"

"John!" Mrs. Evans slapped him gently. "They most certainly cannot!" She looked at the children. "No more than two apiece, understand?" They nodded, and she went into the kitchen to fetch meals for herself and her husband.

As they ate, Severus found that he quite liked the man now that he belived them. He smiled to himself, remembering the rest of Petunia's words. _"Once he accepts something though, it's just like he's always known it. It's hard to find something he won't treat like it was expected._" Maybe- just maybe- he could grow to trust these two adults. He smirked. Muggle adults no less!

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Longest Chapter yet! Hopefully they'll continue getting progressivly longer.

Allright, next chapter should be up in a few days, it's in the makings currently. Please review telling me your opinion of the story so far, and of which house of Hogwarts these three are destined for! Until next time.


	6. Chapter 6

Allright guys, I'm finally updating! Another chapter should be out soon. Thank you for all your suggestions, and I now have a very good idea of which houses will be chosen. Tuney turned out to be the problem child when it came to sorting, but I finally picked a house for her. I hope you enjoy this chapter! And please belive me when I say everything has a plot purpose, including the first half of this chapter.

**I don't have the initials JKR, or millions of dollars. Therefore, I don't own.

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Severus sat in his room staring out the window with a blank expression. _ "Bye Sev, We'll see you soon!"  
_He scoffed as he recalled those words. It had been a month since he had last heard that. Sighing, he walked across the bare wooden floor to his old dresser. He examined himself in the mirror, and sneered at the reflection.

"I warned you." He told it. "You should have listened to me. Why did you even dare to dream that they might care about you?" He fell backward onto his bed. "Just because you go down there every day just in case..." It wasn't uncommon for a few days to go by in between visits, but a month? Severus was sure they had forgotten about him.

A bottle broke downstairs, and a man's voice called, "Boy! Come here!"

Severus stood with a groan, hurried down the stairs, and entered the kitchen. "Yes?" He paused for as long as he dared before adding, "Sir?"

His dad snarled at him, waving a bottle of alcohol wildly. The man was unshaven and disheveled. "Where is she?"

Thankful that he had chosen to stand on the opposite side of the room, Severus answered quickly. "Mom's gone to buy some groceries."

"That-" the smashing of the next bottle thankfully drowned out the description. "She took my drinking money!"

Severus looked pointedly at the fresh bottle the man had produced, but didn't reply. As they stood glaring at each other, the door opened. Severus' heart sank as he saw his mother enter, clutching two bags. She paled slightly upon seeing them. "Tobias, I didn't know you would be back today."

Severus took the opportunity to run out the still-open door, hearing yet another bottle break as the man began to yell at her. He ran to the playground, fighting back tears as he sank against a tree.

He spent the rest of the day there, un-moving, until the sun was almost gone. Then he stood, rubbing the cramps out of his legs, and reluctantly slunk home.

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The next day, he walked to the playground for what he promised himself would be the last time. He had left before either parent woke, and decided to check one last time. He stuffed the last of the hunk of bread he had stolen for a make-shift breakfast into his mouth, and slipped through the gate of the playground.

He sat on "his" swing for a few hours, tracking the sun's progress in the sky. He was half asleep when he heard two painfully familiar voices yelling.

"SEVERUS!" Looking up, he saw Lily and Petunia charging down the road to the playground. Petunia pulled ahead and clambered straight over the fence, ponytail swishing as she landed. Lily, moments behind, dropped the bag she was carrying and followed her sister's example

Even as he realized that it wasn't his imagination and sleep-deprived state causing them, but that they were there and real, they smothered him in a group hug. By the time they pulled away, laughing, he was laughing with them. He stepped back to look at them, and to his shock Lily was almost in tears.

"Sev! We're sooo sorry!" She cried, hugging him again for good measure.

"Our parents wanted to surprise us, we didn't know until the day it happened!" Added Petunia.

"We went on vacation for Christmas! A whole month with our grandparents!"

"We tried to catch you and tell you goodbye but you weren't here!"

"What you must think of us! Disappearing for a month!"

"We missed you!" They ended together, peering at him, searching for his reaction.

Severus blinked. "I came here every day." He said simply.

At this the girls burst into tears, and both hugged him fiercely. They apologized again, and he accepted cautiously. When he did they broke out into smiles, and began chattering away about their vacation.

Severus listened with one ear as he thought the situation over, torn. _ They missed you… But they didn't warn me! They tried. But an entire moth! But they came back… Is it worth losing two friends? Magical friends?_ Smiling, he tuned back into the conversation.

"…So Lily wants to show the pictures to everyone at our birthday party! I still can't believe mom's only letting us invite three friends!"

Severus stiffened. "I'm sure they'll like that."

Lily cocked her head to one side, and gave him a puzzled glance. "Well, yeah, I guess."

He arched an eyebrow. "You'll have to show them to me sometime."

Lily looked confused, and then realization dawned. "You're invited! Did you think you weren't?"

When he didn't respond, Petunia groaned and punched him lightly. "Of course you are! Hey, Lily, speaking of _birthdays_…"

Lily shrieked, and ran to the gate. She returned a minute later, panting slightly. "Happy Birthday and Merry Christmas Sev!" She cried as she dumped a bag in his lap.

Severus stared at the bag in his lap and looked at the girls, who nodded eagerly.

"Open it, silly!" said Petunia, watching eagerly. "Did you forget today was your birthday?"

Severus, who actually had forgotten, smiled sheepishly and opened the bag, pulling out two wrapped packages. He picked up the lightest one and shook it gently before slowly peeling back the paper. A picture frame revealed itself, and he turned it over in his hands. Blue, green, and yellow foam letters spelled out "best friends", and polka dots adorned the rest of the frame. Inside was a picture of the three children that the girls' dad had taken one day. Severus was in between the two girls smiling shyly at the camera, while Lily and Petunia had their arms around him beaming.

Severus looked up at the girls, shocked. "Thanks, I…"

"Now the other one!" Interrupted Lily, almost bouncing up and down.

He obediently opened the other, much squishier package, and gasped as a black jacket fell out onto his lap. Pulling it on, he found that it was an almost perfect fit. "Thank you Lily, thank you Petunia!" He said, admiring his jacket. "But I didn't get you anything…"

Petunia rolled her eyes. "Sev, for a moth you thought we had abandoned you. We're just glad to have you back!"

Lily nodded in agreement. "The party is in two days, so come over to our house at noon. We'll be busy decorating tomorrow, so we can't come here." She glanced at the sky, and groaned. "We have to head back, we promised dad we wouldn't stay out very long before coming home and unpacking. I'm glad the jacket fits!"

With that, the girls left, calling goodbyes and making him promise to come to their house in two days time. Severus was left on the playground, rubbing his jacket and suppressing tears yet again. To his surprise, these were tears of happiness. He was wanted, missed, and he had two best friends who were going to Hogwarts with him in a few short months. As he walked home, carrying his pictureframe, a new spring was in his step.

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It's short, but a new one is on the way! And I should have a lot less problems with RL getting in the way.


	7. Chapter 7

Allright, another chapter down! This is the first day off I've had since the last update, and I wanted to get something up here for y'all, so it may be a bit short. I honestly try to make them longer, but I never have time! The next one will be twice this long, I promise. I haven't been able to reply to reviewers like I usually do, so if I neglect to reply to you I'm sorry! This goes to all reviewers when I say that I love hearing from you, am soooo glad you're enjoying the story, and would be thrilled if you keep reviewing to keep me on track. And Alex, as always I'm glad for your opinion! I'll keep your "Britpicks" in mind, though I must confess I plan on disregarding a few just for the story's sake and for effect. Thank you all for reading, and please review!

Oh, and yes, the Evans have a dog. Yes, it's name is Dusty. Yes, they listen to Steppenwolf. Yes, Severus learns lyrics very quickly. Yes, he is getting comfortable enough to sing around the girls. If you take issue with any of this, I'm very sorry, drop me a review explaining why and I may change it. Maybe.

**I'm a brunette, live in America, and write fanfiction. Do I own Harry Potter or any songs you recognize in this chapter? Well gee, what do you think? If you guessed NO, you're correct!**

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Severus was once more in the basement, pouring over an old potions textbook. If one had bothered to listen, they would have heard him muttering quietly to himself as he scribbled notes in the margins.

"Changes flowers to other flowers… good. Now for one that works on inanimate objects… Maybe a low-grade morphing potion?" He groaned, and rubbed his forehead. "I'm getting in over my head… Okay, so something simpler? They liked the hair color potion… Mom had that perfume that changed… no, too strange. What about…" He trailed off, and slowly smiled. Hopping off the stool he had been perched on, he ran to the cabinet. "Rosemary, sage, thyme. That's not right…" He began pulling open drawers. "Ah!" He produced a box with cups of herbs. "Now I just need to find a…" He looked again, seized something from the depths of the drawer, and smirked triumphantly.

Rushing over to the cauldron, he carefully lit a fire under it, thanking his lucky stars that the makeshift chimney he had made worked correctly. As the cauldron heated, he began to crush small berries with the side of his knife and collect the juices. Clearing the berry corpses away, he started the tedious process of dicing the required herbs. With the fire heated properly, he poured in the juice and sprinkled in the first of the leaves. "Stir counter-clockwise in multiples of 7… But I put daisy root in, so it should need clockwise too. Maybe…" He added a note in the margin of the book once more, and smiled. All was going well.

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Lily hung up the last of the ribbons, and watched her sister impatiently. "Come on Tuney, they'll be here any minute now!"

Her sister gave her a long-suffering look, and pointed to the clock. "It's ten. They aren't coming until noon."

Lily glared at the clock. "But I want Sev to meet Amy and Judy! I wish mom had let us invite their brothers too."

Petunia shook her head, but her eyes betrayed mutual excitement. "Let's go to the playground, we'll go crazy here." They shrugged on their jackets, and called out to their parents where they were going.

"Stay within sight of the house, I want you both here when the first guests arrive!" Their mom shouted after them, and rolled her eyes with a smile as they yelled back that they would.

They headed for the playground, Lily skipping happily. Petunia followed close behind, quietly singing. Lily caught the sound, and joined in. By the time they had reached their destination, they were running and dancing as well as belting out the lyrics, and a very amused Severus saw them as he sat on "his" swing.

They continued, unaware that he was watching, and ran through the gate still singing.

"Well you don't know what we can find!" Sang Lily, rather off-key but very enthusiastically.

"Why don't you come with me little girl?" Added Petunia, fractionally better than her sister.

"On a magic carpet ride!" They ended together, making the last note to go as high as they could.

Severus laughed with them, and they looked up, a bit embarrassed.

"Oh, hi Sev." Said Lily. "Erm, that's our dad's favorite song, so we know all the words and all…"

Petunia nodded. "And we're really excited about today, so extra energetic."

Severus shook his head. "You two are bonkers, did you know that?"

"Hey, you're friends with us." Said Lily, elbowing him in the side. Instead of skin, she came in contact with something hard. "Ow!"

Severus paled and began apologizing, pulling out two small vials from his jacket pocket. "Happy birthday."

They took the bottles excitedly, and examined the purple liquid inside it.

"What is it?" Asked Petunia.

"It's a sort of nail polish. My mom had a book of potions girls liked, and I thought…"

He was cut off by both of them hugging him. "Thank you!" They said in unison.

"I'm glad you like it."

They sat in amiable silence for a while, Lily humming under her breath.

"I'm going to have to learn that song." Remarked Severus after a while.

"You mean you don't know it?" Asked Petunia, feigning horror.

"No, we never listen to the radio."

The girls fell back in mock faints, and he flushed slightly. It wasn't as if it was his fault…

"Come on Lils, we have an emergency here!"

Lily nodded, and seized Severus' hand. "Let's get him home right away!"

They took off running, with Severus trying to make them explain where they were dragging him off to, and moaning about their over-reacting.

After a minute of running toward the girls' house, they finally slowed, with the girls still chattering on about how awful it must have been for Sev to never have heard that song.

"Well, I guess that a lot of people in _that_ part of town haven't." Said Petunia disdainfully, and flushed slightly when she caught Severus' eye and saw him glaring. "Sorry, that came out wrong."

He raised an eyebrow, and a ghost of a sneer formed, but he stayed silent. At last, they reached the house, and the girls ushered Severus in. Petunia dashed up the stairs, and came back with a radio, and paused to catch her breath. "Birthday present." She said in response to Severus' unasked question.

"Now come on! You can't see any of the decorations!" Cried Lily, almost shoving the two out the door to the backyard.

"Get off Dusty!" Snapped Petunia as a large golden retriever jumped up to greet them.

Severus found himself suddenly sitting on the ground with a lap full of fur and tail, and gasped. He immediately regretted this, because Dusty seized the opportunity to smell his breath and attempt to lick his face.

Lily reached down, and in one smooth movement pulled Severus up and pushed the dog off. "You get used to it, and then you can fight him off. Sorry about that."

"It's fine…" he replied, glaring at his black jacket which now looked rather golden instead.

"The dog fur will come off eventually." Added Lily.

They sat at the table Mr. Evans had provided for the party, and Lily turned on the radio.

"What station?" Asked Petunia, petting the dog absent-mindedly.

Lily didn't bother to reply, and soon had music blaring from the speakers.

They lost themselves in conversation once more, with Lily or Petunia occasionally shouting for everyone to be quiet so the song could play. Mrs. Evans heard snatches of singing as she prepared food for the party, and smiled as she heard Severus hesitantly singing the chorus to the songs after only a few times of hearing it.

All three children were laughing and singing, "It took me soooo long to find out! But I found out!" when the doorbell rang, and the girls squealed.

"Lily, Petunia, Severus, your guests are here!" called Mrs. Evans, and Petunia sprang up and headed inside.

Per usual, Severus followed at a slightly more controlled pace, though Lily was at his side this time. She looked at him, and frowned. "You look worried."

He shrugged. "I'm not good at meeting new people." Well, _that_ was the understatement of the year he thought sourly.

"You did a good job with Tuney and me! And we'll be there to back you up. Besides, why would anyone not like you?" With that, she hurried to catch up with her sister.

Severus smiled to himself. He liked Lily a bit more than her sister (though he would never admit that to himself, let alone to them!), and knowing that she thought he was likeable was a good feeling. He went to meet the two new girls wearing a genuine smile.

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A sort-of cliffhanger here I'm afraid, but I'll update with the party soon! If you're wondering why the girls had their party so early, let's just say that half the decorations are green and the cake has three names on it. I can promise updates faster, because I only plan to have two or three more (long) chapters before we hit diagon alley, and then the fun really begins!


	8. Chapter 8

So I finally updated! I'm not entirely happy with this chapter, but I'm leaving on vacation tonight and I thought you might appreciate an update before I left. And it's not long enough, but it is the longest yet! So I'll work on that. Please review so I know if you're happy with the trio's opinions on Hogwarts houses!

**Go read HP7. Did Sev die? Did Fred die? Was Malfoy a bad guy? Yes? Well then, it's obviously not my work.**

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Severus watched as Lily and Petunia happily greeted the two girls. After a moment, Lily pointed to Severus.

"Amy, Judy, this is Severus. He's eleven." She turned to Severus. "Amy is eleven, but Judy is twelve."

Severus nodded; wondering why on Earth Lily was telling him this. "Hello."

Judy giggled, and Amy poked Lily. "Let's go up to your room."

The five headed up the stairs, Judy falling back to walk with Lily. When Severus was out of earshot, Judy grabbed Lily's arm. "You didn't say he was _cute_! I was expecting a geek."

Lily blinked. "Who, Sev?"

"Yes!"

"You're barmy. And we're too young to be caring about boys."

Judy gave her a pitying smile. "You'll see when you're my age."

They ended the conversation, shaking their heads at eachother.

Severus, blissfully unaware of the conversation behind him, was talking to Petunia and Amy.

"So you're going to the same boarding school as Lily and Petunia?" Asked Amy, looking at Severus disbelievingly.

"Scholarship." Said a seething Severus

"Ah. Hey Lily, do you want to try that new playground game?" Seeing Lily glance at Severus worriedly, she waved a hand dismissively. "He won't mind!"

They arrived in the room, and the girls flopped onto the two beds. Severus took his chair, and looked at the girls. Lily and Amy were on the top bunk, Petunia and Judy on the bottom. Surprisingly, both beds were made.

"Okay, let's start!" Cried Amy. When she was sure all eyes were on her she began to chant. "A my name is Amy, I'm going to many Arthur!" This produced giggles, and Amy blushed. "Be quiet. We're going to sell apples, and live in America!"

Judy cleared her throat. "B my name is Betty, I'm gonna marry… oh ew, Bobby!" They collapsed in laughter as Severus looked on quietly. "We're going to sell beads, and live in Brazil!"

Lily took "C" and Petunia "D". There they turned to look at Severus, who grimaced.

"You've got to be kidding me… Oh all right! E my name is… Ernest. I'm going to marry… Emily. We're going to sell Eggplants, and live in Europe."

Amy lived in France next, while Judy sold Giraffes. Lily married Hubert, and Petunia became Irene.

Severus' turn came again, and he showed the same level of enthusiasm. "J my name is James, I'm going to marry Judy. We'll sell jump ropes, and live in Jamaica." Judy blushed when he said her name, and Lily mimed gagging.

The game went on, with Judy making Lily marry Leonard, live in Las Vegas, and sell Lemons. Amy made Petunia marry Peter, sell pizza, and live in Paris. Lily got S. "S my name is Severus, I'm going to marry Sally, we're going to sell sha…" the word 'shampoo' died in her mouth when she saw his expression. "Er, sailboats, and live in Switzerland."

Finally Sev got Z, and the game ended.

"Now what?" asked Lily

"Let's just talk." Said Amy, and Judy smiled at Severus. "So what's Sevvy like?"

Severus winced at the nickname. Petunia shrugged. "Shy, smart, and," She smirked at Severus. "_cunning_, and stuff like that."

"In other words, he's Sev." Said Lily, beaming at him.

"Where do you live?" asked Judy, and Petunia winced slightly.

"Spinners end." Said Severus quietly. Judy's moth made a perfect "O" and she shot a meaningful glance at Petunia, who looked away hurrridly.

Lily, sensing the awkwardness, broke in. "Sev is our best guy friend." As Amy and Judy examined him, Petunia mouthed 'best friend of any kind' at him. He grinned at her, and smirked at the two girls staring at him.

They talked about anything and everything for a while, and finally decided to move out back for cake. They headed to the backyard, and this time Severus helped fend off the over-enthusiastic golden retriever. Lily flipped on the radio, and Mrs. Evans appeared with a cake.

Severus stared at the cake. To his surprise, it was blue, yellow, and green. And it said "Happy birthday Lily, Petunia, and Severus." They sang happy birthday, and a still stunned Severus accepted his slice of cake.

Suddenly, Lily squealed. "Sev! The song we were singing at the playground is on the radio!"

Judy snorted. "You were singing _this_?"

Amy cut in. "Playground? And we're still here? Let's go there!"

The trio exchanged uncomfortable looks. Through unspoken agreement, the playground was "theirs". None of them really wanted to share it.

"Let's do presents first." Said Lily. Judy and Amy each produced two packages from the hall, and looked at Severus expectantly.

"We already exchanged presents." Explained Lily.

"Oh."

Lily opened her presents, and laughed. "Thanks guys!" She held up a lily-scented room spray from Amy, and a hat with a fake lily on the brim from Judy.

Petunia displayed the same, but changed accordingly.

"Amy, Judy, your parents are here!" The children exchanged goodbyes, and Mrs. Evans ushered the two to their cars.

Lily sank back into her chair. "Remind me again why we like them?"

"School social life." Said Petunia. "Judy is one person I won't miss at Hogwarts."

"I wish Margret and Sarah had been in town! Oh, Judy likes Sev by the way. Well, she probably doesn't anymore after hearing where he lives, she's so dumb about stuff like that."

"Wait." Said Severus, confused. "You don't like those girls?" When Lily and Petunia shook their heads, he gave them a blank look.

"Their popular at our school, and the fact that we invited them means they won't spread rumors about us or anything." Explained Lily.

"Can you believe Amy wanted to play the name game? Honestly, we outgrew that a long time ago!"

Severus groaned. "That was strange."

"Very." Lily pulled the small vial of nail polish out of her pocket, and grabbed two paintbrushes off the floor. "C'mon Tuney, let's try out our presents."

Petunia sneered at Severus. "If this turns out to be flower themed…"

"It's not, I promise."

The girls were silent for a while as they painted their nails. Once they finished their left hands, Lily moved to sit by Petunia. "Trade you a hand for a hand?"

"Deal."

Seeing Severus' confused expression, Lily smiled. "It's almost physically impossible to paint your own right hand and not mess up."

They chatted for a while about Hogwarts, and finally the nail polish was dry. "Oh Severus, it's beautiful!" cried Lily.

The polish was purple, but it shimmered in the light. Even as they watched, it changed to blue, and then to green.

"I love it!" added Petunia, hugging him alongside Lily.

"I'm glad." Said Severus, smiling at them.

"Hey, what's the countdown until we go shopping for Hogwarts?" Asked Lily.

"Er… four months."

The three friends groaned. "I can't wait until we're all in Slytherin together!" said Severus.

"I think we'll all be in Gryffindor actually. I know they're brave idiots at times, but we're all pretty brave I bet." Said Lily.

"If we follow each other, wouldn't it be into Hufflepuff? After all, they're loyal."

The three looked at each other, horrified. "We want different houses?" Asked Lily.

"My mom's entire family was in Slytherin, I'm expected to be."

"And I just like the sound of Hufflepuff, it sounds friendly."

Lily looked close to tears. "We have to be in the same house!"

"But which one?" Asked Severus. "We're all suited for different ones." He too looked crestfallen.

"We'll figure it out." Said Petunia. "And even if we're in different houses we'll still be best friends, and we'll hang out every chance we get, right?"

"Definitely." Chorused the three together.

"Good. Now who wants to steal the rest of the cake and go to the playground?" Asked Lily. Petunia sprang up, and ran to the kitchen.

"Go! I'll get the cake!" She called over her shoulder.

Lily and Severus bolted out of the house, laughing and screaming.

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Three months later found the three on the playground where they spent almost every day. Severus was seated, leaning against a tree and reading a Defense against the Dark arts book. Petunia was leaning on his shoulder, reading a Transfiguration textbook. Lily had her head on his other shoulder, reading along with him.

"I have these books memorized." She said, sighing.

"Well then you ought to do really well in our first year." Teased Severus, reaching up and poking her head.

Petunia grinned. "We'll all be the best in our year, I don't know what the other children will do."

"I'll be the best Gryffindor, you'll be the best Hufflepuff, and Sev will be the best Slytherin." Lily said, laughing. "Ravenclaw had better count themselves lucky."

They had finally, after many arguments, come to terms with the fact that they were destined for three different houses. Lily was defiantly stubborn enough for Gryffindor, she still secretly thought that the others would be in her house. Petunia loyally let them have their own opinions, falling into the role of loyal peacemaker with much more ease than she would have when they first met. Severus now looked at the girls more, as if trying to etch their faces into his memory. A tiny part of him still thought that they would ditch him the moment they heard Slytherin was "evil".

"I don't believe it's only ten more days until school gets out!" Petunia was saying. "I want my wand!"

"I can't believe that only eight months ago we didn't know Sev, and we thought I was the only one with magic."

"Freak." Said Petunia fondly.

Severus listened to them argue with a smile. "What was I again? Oh yes, _that boy_."

Petunia slapped him gently. "I was jealous, okay? You would have been too."

"I was, you two were so close and I wanted friends like you guys."

"Wish granted." Said Lily, closing her eyes and saving a stick like a wand.

They sat in comfortable silence for a while, reading busily.

"So how are your parents doing?" Asked Petunia, bumping Severus with her head.

"They're better. My mom still has a broken arm, but it's almost healed. Dad got a new job, so he's hoe even less."

"That's good." Said Petunia. She had figured out what Severus' home life was a few weeks after the birthday party, and once she convinced Lily they confronted Severus. He insisted that it wasn't as bad as they thought, but had started to open up a little. Petunia still didn't believe his mom's broken arm was really from tripping though.

"Speaking of," Severus said, "I need to get home, mom said she was making dinner early today." He stood, causing Lily and Petunia to both fall.

Ignoring their complaints, he began to gather his things.

"Goodbye Sev!" Called Lily, moving to lean of her sister.

"Bye Sevvy!" Yelled Petunia with a smirk.

"Don't call me that!" He shouted back as he slipped out the gate and began to walk home.

* * *

So there you have it. I'd like to have time to re-write it yet again, but it's been too long since I updated last. Petunia and Lily were trying their best to make the two girls like them, so Sev didn't have as good of a time at the part as he could have. And Judy is boy-crazy, so there was yet another thing to alienate Sev. All in all, those two aren't my favorite OC's, but I wanted to show that Lily and Tuney still want to be popular, though they won't let it seperate them from Sev. Also, each secretly hopes that they can convince the others to be in their house of choice, so they haven't quite come to an agreement on that yet... that may cause trouble. I'll update in a week! I hope...


	9. Chapter 9

So a few months have passed since the party, and the day the friends have been waiting for has finally arrived! And it only took me a month to get up here! Fanfiction wouldn't let me post... I think the tumblebeasts are following me around the internet. I finally threw my hands up in disgust and posted this after a month of rewriting so that we can get through this rough patch and return to friendship and etc. From now on I'll stop skipping so violently, and we'll see some real rivalries/alliances form with much better detail. Yes, I do plot this thing out when I'm bored... Anywho, thank you for your kind reviews, I love reading them! Reviewers Alex and Invader Vinya get cookies and hugs, for being supremely helpful and for giving me a huge confidence boost respectfully. All other reviewers get cookies and a smile from Severus.

**Was Severus everyone's favorite teacher? Was Ron a completley understanding friend who didn't go on idiotic rants about how much his life sucked when his best friends life was in danger? Did Hermionie marry Draco? No? Well then, put two and two together my friend, I'm not her.**

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Lily and Petunia were lying on their beds, tossing and turning. Finally, Lily rolled so her head hung over the edge and she could see her sister. "Remember when that Professor came to explain our owls to our parents?"

Petunia chuckled at the memory. A lady calling herself McGonagall had come knocking on the door, clearly expecting a very confused family of muggles. Instead she had found a miniature party as Severus and the girls celebrated the arrival of their letters. She had offered to show them a spell, and had instantly been bombarded with requests as the children recalled their favorite spells from Severus' textbooks. "Yeah, I remember."

"Well, I was just thinking…." She turned to stare out the window. "What do you think she meant when she said the wand picks the wizard?"

Petunia groaned. "Lily, we'll find out tomorrow, can't you wait?"

"No I can't wait! Tomorrow we're picking up Sev and going to the wizarding world for the first time!" She threw a pillow in the air and caught it.

"Goodnight Lily."

"But Tuney…"

"Goodnight. I for one want to be awake when we go to Diagon Alley."

"Night…"

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Severus knocked on the door on the now-familiar house, and heard shouting coming from inside.

"He's here!"

"Now we can leave!"

And, in unison, "Mother! It's time to go!"

He grinned, and as the door began to open he braced himself for what he knew was coming. Two girls came running out, and grabbed him in a hug. Laughing, he hugged back and rolled his eyes as they started jumping and squealing "Today's the day!"

Mrs. Evans came out the door pulling on a coat, and Mr. Evans followed carrying her purse. "I take it you all are ready?" He asked dryly.

Severus slunk up to him, and quietly held out a bag of pounds. When Mr. Evans raised an eyebrow, he whispered, "For supplies." Mr. Evans nodded and pocketed the bag. Glancing at the girls, he pulled out the car keys and unlocked the car. "Hop in."

They scrambled into the backseat, Lily ending up stuck in the middle. The car ride passed with much squealing from the girls, though Petunia restrained herself better than her eager sister. They chattered on, continuing one of their favorite arguments- Which class would be the best at Hogwarts. As the car rolled to a halt, they were at each other's throats.

"There is no way History of magic will be fun Tuney!"

"Well what about Potions? You think _that_ will be any better?"

"You're both so wrong, Defense will be the best!"

Jumping out of the car, Petunia shook her head. "Poor confused children."

Her father snorted at that, but kept a carefully straight face as he and his wife looked around. "I don't see the place the professor was talking about."

Lily gave him a confused look. "What do you mean? Look, it's right there!" She pointed at a gap in between two stores, but he couldn't quite see where. His vision kept straying from where he ordered it to go.

Petunia took her mother's hand, and Severus came up to Mr. Evans' side. "Remember Lily?" He asked quietly. "Muggles can't see it." As he spoke, he and Petunia ushered the adults forward, until they were a step away from a blank wall.

"Oh wow." Said Lily in a hushed voice. "We really are different." She stuck her hand out, and Mrs. Evans gasped as it went straight through the wall. "Relax mom, I'm just opening the door." A wall of sound came from the blank space, and the children walked through, pulling the adults after them.

"Welcome to the Leaky Cauldron!" Said a motherly woman as they walked into the pub. "Tom, come greet our customers!" A sullen boy came out, and stood by his mother's side. "Would you like some drinks?"

"We're here for school supplies." Said Severus after deciding that the Evans family was incapable of speech. They were looking around wildly at all the people, and he tried not to roll his eyes. So_ this_ is what his mother had meant that morning when she cautioned him against mixing muggles and magic.

"Oh of course, you must be Muggleborns! Well Diagon alley is right this way, I'll let you through." The adults watched in shock as she stepped through a doorway and pulled a wand out of her pocket. Tapping the brick wall at the end of the alley, she muttered under her breath. "That ought to do it!" Sure enough, the wall folded away, and Diagon alley was revealed.

As the adults slowly stepped forward, three squeals of delight were heard from the children. Severus clamped a hand firmly over his mouth, and looked around to make sure no one had heard him. Mrs. Evans smiled down at him and put a hand on his shoulder. "This is…" she said, looking around at the hustle and bustle.

"Amazing?" Asked Petunia.

"Perfect?" Tried Lily.

"Unbelievable." Finished Mr. Evans. They walked forward, trying not to openly stare at the sights and shops. Wizards and witches swarmed around, robes flowing and wands flashing.

"We need to go to Gringotts first, right?" Asked Petunia, looking to Severus for support. When he nodded, she grinned.

Lily, not one to be beaten by her sister, tugged on Severus' sleeve. "And then we go buy wands." He smiled at her in agreement.

They headed for the huge building at the end of the street, exclaiming at shops as they went. A group of children were crowded around a store front, yelling and shouting. A tall wizard dressed in flashy robes was holding a broomstick and wildly gesturing as he described its new features.

"What's that?" Asked Lily, pointing at the broom.

Severus glanced at it, and rolled his eyes. "A Nimbus 1001, the latest in racing brooms."

"Racing… brooms…?" Mr. Evans groaned. "I need to learn to stop questioning things, don't I."

"Yes dear." Mrs. Evans squeezed his hand.

They walked up the steps of Gringotts, and Petunia craned her neck to see the inscription.

Quietly Severus read it, the Evans family listening raptly.

"Enter, stranger, but take heed

Of what awaits the sin of greed

For those who take, but do not earn,

Must pay most dearly in their turn.

So if you seek beneath our floors

A treasure that was never yours,

Thief, you have been warned, beware

Of finding more than treasure there."

"Wow…" chorused the girls. "Oh, Mom, Dad? You might want to watch out." When their parents raised their eyebrows, the children smirked at them. "The bank is run by goblins."

With that, Severus opened the doors and gave a mock bow to the girls. "After you."

They scurried through, and Severus barely heard Petunia whisper, "Let's give him sugar more often, this is the craziest I've ever seen him."

He smirked, and followed the Evans family through the door. If they thought he was ever going to let them trick him into drinking a soda and eating a pack of candy in the same sitting again then they had another thing coming.

"Welcome to Gringotts Wizarding bank, how may I help you?" Came a bored voice from behind a counter. Upon closer examinatinon, they spotted the goblin seated behind it watching them.

"Er, yes, hello, we'd like to exchange pounds for..." He looked to the children for help, and Lily stood on tip-toes to whisper in his ear. "Galleons…?" Said Mr. Evans, moving up to the counter.

"Ah yes, muggleborns. I assume you also want to set up an allowance from your muggle bank so that your son and daughters will have spending money?"

Mr. Evans glanced at his wife questioningly, and she smoothly took over. "That sounds lovely, though the boy isn't ours by right. If it's a reasonable amount though, we'd be more than happy to supply for him also."

The goblin shrugged, and produced a roll of parchment from his desk drawer. "All details and requirements are here, and if you'll sign at the bottom once you've made up your minds we can finish your transaction."

After a brief whispered discussion, Mr. and Mrs. Evans singed the paper. "We can't tell him, he'd think it was insulting." Whispered Mrs. Evans.

"I'm still not sure why we're doing it in the first place!"

"Just think how lovely it will be for him to have something to fall back on in emergencies John!"

"We're not the boy's parents, shouldn't that be their job?"

"You know his parents; for all that they do for him we might as well be his parents!"

"If you say so dear."

They took the three bags of money from the goblin, and smiled gratefully. "17 silver sickles to one gold galleon, 29 bronze knuts to one silver sickle, or 493 bronze knuts to one gold galleon if you'd prefer. Have fun shopping."

They gathered the children, who had been standing in a small huddle talking excitedly, and exited to the street. "Now then, which way is this wand shop?"

Severus pointed down the street to a sigh saying _**Ollivanders**_. "I have a feeling that would be a good place to start looking."

As they entered the shop, a man looked up and smiled at them. "Ah, welcome, welcome! I am Ollivander."

"I'm John Evans, and this is my wife, Violet." Mr. Evans replied, shaking Ollivander's hand

"I'm Lily Evans!"

"Petunia Evans, nice to meet you sir."

"Severus Snape." At this, Ollivander raised an eyebrow.

"Ah, Eileen Prince's son! Yew, unicorn hair, eleven inches, rather swishy, correct?" When Severus nodded, surprised, he smiled. "I never forget a sale. Well then, let's see if we can't find you three your perfect match! If you'd just sit here please…"

Severus found himself seated on a stool with different wands being thrust in his hands. He obediently waved each one, growing more and more impatient as they either didn't react or had disastrous results. Finally, after what must have been the fifteenth time the selected wand rebelled, Ollivander snapped his fingers. "I've got it!" He hurried to the back of the store, and came back clutching a wand box happily. "Perhaps… this!" Severus gave Lily and Petunia a long-suffering look, and even as they giggled he accepted the wand.

His eyes widened as the wood instantly grew warm in his hand. He waved it in an arc, and brilliant white sparks shot out the end. "Of course… Cedar, dragon heartstring, 13 inches, springy." He gave Severus an appraising look. "You'll go far if a wand like this has chosen you lad, mark my words." With a knowing smile he ushered Severus off the stool and called for the next customer.

After ten wands, Lily grew bored. She managed to shatter a lamp with one of the failures, and Severus had had to hold back laughter. Finally, Mr. Ollivander brought a wand out that chose her. As soon as she touched it it sent waves of magic through her, and she shivered delightedly. Waving it produced sparks similar to Severus', and she beamed at them. "Willow, 10 ¼ inches, unicorn hair. Rather swishy. An excellent match, very good for charms!" said Mr. Ollivander, shooing her away as he had done Severus.

Petunia was last, and she took longer than either Severus or Lily. By the twentieth wand, she looked hopeless, and was exchanging worried glances with the other children. Mr. Ollivander frowned and tutted at her, and then hurried to the back of the store. "Try this. Unicorn hair, ivy, 11 inches, and flexible." Petunia glared at the wand as if it had offended her, but sighed and picked it up. It felt warm compared to the cool feel of the others, and the moment her hand closed around it she was surrounded by rainbow sparks. "Wow…" she whispered.

"Indeed Miss Evans. A deceptively strong wand, I wish you luck with it." With that, he clapped his hands and turned to the parents, who began counting out galleons.

They went to buy robes next, and the children left the tedious fittings with bags of new school robes. Severus tugged at the set he was wearing self-consciously, but smiled when the girls both swore that they suited him perfectly. After robes, they headed for the school supplies store, where potions supplies were purchased. Each child got a set of never-ending ink quills and parchment, which the parents found absurd. It took much patient explaining on the salesman's part, but Mr. Evans begrudgingly bought them rolls of parchment and extra quills, muttering about notebook paper and pens throughout the entire ordeal.

When they left the store, Mrs. Evans elbowed him. "John, you're being ridiculous, I'm sure they don't appreciate your complaints."

"Oh come now Violet, you can't believe that they haven't discovered some sort of pen by now?"

"Nevertheless."

They bickered pleasantly as they walked to the bookstore, with the three friends ignoring them in favor of discussing the ingredients they had just bought. "I just… until now it didn't really seem real. And now here we are, with wands, robes, and potions ingredients!" Cried Petunia happily.

"We're real witches! And wizards of course." Said Lily, spinning in a small circle.

They stepped into the shop, and spent almost an hour lost in the books. The little store had books on almost everything unimaginable, from mindreading to fortune telling and beyond. Finally they bought the necessary books on the _**Hogwarts Supply List-First Years**_, and left.

"Well, that's everything!" Said Mrs. Evans as they walked back toward the Leaky Cauldron. "And it only took seven hours to finish exploring a single street. I do believe that's a family record. Now we get to return to boring old London until you three leave in a month."

The children grinned. "Only one month…" Said Lily dreamily.

"I don't think I'll be able to make it." Petunia moaned.

"We'll survive." Severus said dryly, but his eyes smiled.

* * *

For anyone who's as nerdy as me and has as much free time as me, this is the site i used to pick out the children's wands. ?showtopic=7791  
It has the meanings of all cores and such, so you can see what Sev and co. are going to have strengths and weaknesses in. Coming up next: Brief summer and then Kings cross station!


	10. Chapter 10

Allright, I'm finally updating! It's longer than usual though... Thank you to all my wonderful reviewers, keep doing what you're doing please!

Please excuse the Sorting hat song... I thought there should be one. Also, the sorting hat will be in _italics_ while the childrens thoughts back to it will be in _underlinded italics_.

**Disclaimer: It's not mine.**

* * *

Severus Snape sat cross-legged on his bed, staring out the window. He glanced at the clock on his bedside table, and angled it carefully so he could see it by the moonlight. "Four in the morning." He whispered, and fell backward to examine his ceiling. "Only a few more hours."

He thought of the day his letter had come, and grimaced. At the Evans' house everything had been exciting and happy, but as soon as he got home harsh reality had set in. His father had been furious. The fighting had lasted for hours, until he had gotten drunk enough to forget about the cause. Needless to say, neither he nor his mother had ever mentioned it again. Tomorrow he would escape. His mother would be fine, she was used to his father.

Sighing, he tried to think of a happier topic. He would get to spend a school year with Lily and Petunia. Yes, that was better. He returned to staring out the window, daydreaming.

"Severus?"

With a look of surprise, he turned to his doorway. "Mom?"

She entered the room and sat on the corner of his bed cautiously. "You're leaving tomorrow."

He nodded. "Yes."

"I… I'm happy for you."

Severus started. "You are?"

"You and your father don't get along well, do you."

He shook his head.

"You know we can't leave him."

Another shake.

"Now Severus…"

"He's not a good man." _The understatement of the year._

"We've had this talk before. Knowing you we'll have it again." She sighed and moved closer to him. "So enough of that. My little Severus is growing up and going to Hogwarts, I don't want to argue."

He gave her a small smile. "I'll miss you too mom."

"Maybe… if you owl Friday afternoons… your father isn't ever home then…"

"Maybe."

She put her arm around him and pulled him close, wincing. Noticing, he grimaced. "Watch out for yourself, okay?"

"Severus… of course."

"You can use magic you know."

"But it's so weak now…" After a pause she squeezed him and stood up. "Goodnight Severus. Try and get some sleep."

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Petunia blinked and sat up, rubbing her eyes blearily. Turning to look at the clock, she groaned. 4:00 AM. "And I'm never going to fall back asleep…" she muttered darkly. There was a rustle of sheets from above her, and her sister's head appeared.

"Tuney? You up?" Whispered Lily.

"Yeah."

"Today's the day!"

Petunia groaned once more and rolled over, stretching. "Go to sleep."

"But Petunia!" Lily's head disappeared and her legs replaced it, swinging back and forth. "Today is _the_ day! In a few hours we leave, and then we get on a train and then we go!"

"Sleep. Now."

"You're no fun."

"Sleep is fun."

Lily groaned, and Petunia just knew she was rolling her eyes at the ceiling. Sleep was one thing Lily and Petunia had always disagreed on, with the latter requiring much more. Lily never payed any mind to her sister's arguments though, and Petunia knew she was fighting a losing battle.

"We could…" Lily flung her sheets back dramatically. "Sneak out."

"And go where?" Petunia looked intrigued despite herself.

"I don't know, the park or something." She sighed. "Yeah, I know, not a good idea. But there's no way I'm going to fall back to sleep!"

Petunia sighed and got out of bed, carefully arranging the covers back. She stumbled over to their dresser, and flipped the lamp on. Turning back to her sister, she held up the half full nail polish vials Severus had made them for their birthday. "C'mon, we might as well look our best tomorrow."

Lily grinned and slid off her top bunk. "See? I knew you were as excited as I am!"

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

"SEVERUS!"

Severus looked up from his swing and rolled his eyes. "Hello." The girls dashed up, grabbing their swings and jumping into them. Severus found himself with a face full of red hair, and spluttered indignantly. Lily leaned over to him, eyes twinkling, to apologize and he responded with a twitch of his head that sent his own hair flying into her face.

"Obviously red hair is better for whipping." Petunia said with a smile, and the others grinned back. It had been ten months since the three had begun their friendship with a conversation about hair whipping, and none of them had forgotten.

One more hour… The thought was prevalent among them. No one dared to speak it out loud, but each could feel it everywhere. It whispered through on the wind. One more hour…

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8

Exactly one hour later, Mrs. Evans found them lying on the ground staring at the clouds silently. She smiled sadly and cleared her throat. "Come on kids, we need to go." They got up, excitement shining in their eyes. Severus sprinted to the gate, where his trunks were waiting. Mr. Evans pulled up in their car, and they piled in.

The car ride passed far too quickly for the adults, and far too slowly for the children. When Kings Cross Station finally came in sight, two loud cheers came from the backseat. Severus, who had been looking out the window with a worried expression, merely smiled.

They got out of the car and organized their things, chattering happily all the while. During the walk to platform 9, the girls unconsciously walked closer to their parents.

"Must be another wizard thing…" Mr. Evans muttered. He drew first one, then the other girl in for a hug before turning to Severus and extending his hand. "You all be careful, do you hear me?"

Mrs. Evans hugged her girls, and then grabbed Severus in a hug. "Mail… Owl us every chance you get. And that includes you too Mr. Snape!"

The girls came up on either side of Severus, and he smiled. "Thanks Mrs. Evans… …"

"Mom… Dad…" Petunia said.

"We're going to miss you." The girls finished together. They turned to look at the brick wall. "Sev? Help?"

He made a show of rolling his eyes and sighing before moving so his nose almost touched the bricks. Smiling he waved to the adults, called out a final goodbye, and stepped through the wall.

Mr. Evans' jaw dropped as his wife gasped. "I'll never get used to magic."

The girls gave them one last hug, and pulled their luggage after them as they ran through the bricks. Laughing, they emerged on the other side where Severus stood waiting. "That was so cool!" They looked around at the hundreds of people with wands and bags, and then they saw the train. "Wow…"

Severus smirked. "Shall we?"

They boarded the train quickly, and Lily raced down the hallways. "I found an empty compartment!" Quickly they claimed it, shoving trunks into storage.

"I call window!" Shouted Petunia.

"No way, the window is mine!"

They turned to race to the seat, and found Severus lounging in it. "Nooo!" They launched themselves at him, ending up in a laughing heap on the floor of the compartment. Just as they had calmed down and found seats, the door slid open to reveal three boys staring at them. Two were grinning broadly, while one stood in the back looking embarrassed.

"Do you ladies need help? You seem to have been stuck with an…" he flashed them a smile. "Unfortunate traveling companion."

Severus withdrew into himself, sure that the moment he had been dreading had arrived. _It's happening already. Soon they'll wonder why they ever wasted their time with someone like me…_

Lily's green eyes flashed, and Petunia raised an eyebrow. Glancing at each other, they gave a slight nod.

"Just what do you…"

"Think you're talking about?"

They boy messed his black hair in what he obviously found a dashing manner. "Well we've got a nice empty compartment…" He shot a pointed look at Severus. "That's just big enough for five."

Severus clenched his fists. _ That's it… I've got to try. _ He sneered at the boys. "And just who are you?"

"I'm James. James Potter. Of the Noble house of Potter? The guy behind us is Remus. And this…" He pointed with a flourish, "is Sirius Black, of the most Noble and Ancient house of Black." Sirius gave a bark of laughter. James grinned. "And who might you ladies be?"

"I'm Lily Evans."

"I'm her twin sister, Petunia."

"Fraternal twins." They said together. "The boy with us is Severus Snape."

Though they had emphasized the 'with us', James seemed not to notice. "Come on Remus, help us get their bags." He and Sirius made to step into the compartment, and Severus quickly jumped to block their way.

"You do realize that the girls never answered you." He said coldly, encouraged by the girls' show of support.

"Well, yeah, but the answer is obvious, isn't it?" James said with a smirk that was, in Severus' opinion, nothing compared to his or the girls'.

Sirius let out another bark of laughter. "Who would want to sit with a sniveling idiot like you? Snivelling Severus."

James' eyes widened. "Hey… you may be on to something there Sirius! Snivellus."

Petunia stood up, ponytail swishing in what Severus recognized as a very dangerous way. "Out."

James paused in mid laugh, a puzzled look on his face. "What?"

Lily grabbed Severus' hand, and pulled him up to stand with her. "You heard her. Get. Out." Petunia took Severus' other hand and glared at the boys.

James raised a hand and messed his hair. "Okay, I think we got off on the wrong foot here."

"Smooth move James." Sirius said, still laughing.

"You too. Out!" Lily shouted.

Sirius' jaw dropped. "Who- me?"

"Yes, you. The only one of you who hasn't been a complete git is… oh what's his name… Remus! And he hasn't said anything!"

Petunia pulled her wand out of her pocket. "I don't think we can get much clearer!"

"Oh come on you don't know any spells yet!" James cried.

Lily put a finger to her chin. "Let's see… there's aguamenti, the jelly-legs jinx, bat-bogey hex…" She smiled sweetly. "Of course we've never actually cast any of these, so they may not come out quite right. Then again, would you really like to risk it?"

"You're bluffing. Come on, you can't honestly rather spend the train ride with him over us!"

Severus drew his wand. "My mother is a witch, and unlike them I _have_ cast a few spells. I suggest you leave now, and if you have to try again do it when we aren't extremely angry."

James raised his hands and began to back away slowly. "I'm leaving, I'm leaving. Come on Sirius, Remus." As they left, he messed his hair and winked at the girls. "I'll see you two later!"

"Ugh!" Lily flopped down onto a seat, quickly followed by the other two. "He's such a jerk!"

"You know the worst part?" Petunia asked. When the others looked at her questioningly, she smirked. "Evans comes before Potter in the alphabet. That means…"

Lily groaned. "One of us might end up in the same house as him!"

The rest of the train ride passed uneventfully. Severus left to change, and the girls stayed in the compartment. They laughed at the sight of each other in wizarding clothes, and the girls waved their wands chanting "Abracadabra!"

All too soon for Severus' liking the train ride was over, and they were ushered into row boats. Four fit into a boat, and Severus ended up with Lily, Petunia, and Remus, who smiled shyly.

"I'm sorry about before… James and Sirius mean well I think. I only met them today, but they're generally okay."

Severus chose to ignore this, while the girls nodded very slightly. Remus smiled at them. "They were flirting with every girl, but you two especially. In fact…" He craned his neck, and then rolled his eyes. "They're signaling to me right now to make you two think they're wonderful." When the girls scoffed, he shrugged. "I think it would be pretty hard after that show earlier. I mean, you two are pretty, but eleven is a bit young don't you think?" He blushed as he said the last part, and extended his hand to Severus with a hopeful smile. "I'm Lupin. Remus Lupin. Who're you?"

"Severus Snape." He sneered back.

"It's nice to meet you Severus. And you're Petunia, and you're… Lily?" They nodded and gave him small smiles. "I hope we can be friends."

With that, the boat ride ended and the boys stepped off. Severus carefully took Lily's hand to help her, and Remus did the same for Petunia.

_It's not like I chose Lily specifically, she just happened to be on my side of the boat…_

They joined the crowd swarming through the doors of the castle, listening to the exclamations of awe around them.

"It is beautiful." Said Petunia.

"Very." Said Lily and Severus.

"Oy! Remus!" came a shout.

Remus, who had been staring at the moon, blinked and turned to look at the two boys who were waving at him. "I'd better go…"

"You don't have to be friends with them you know." Said Petunia, looking at him.

"Yeah, well, they were nice to me on the train. I'll be seeing you?" When they nodded hesitantly, he grinned and hurried off.

A woman Severus recognized as the professor who had come to the Evan's when they got their letters came out to greet all the first-years. He tuned out her speech even as the girls listened raptly, and moved with the swarm as they entered the Great Hall. There, on a stool, sat a ragged old hat that he assumed was the sorting hat. Sure enough, the rip in its brim opened wide and a song came pouring out

_I may be old and torn_

_But don't judge by only that_

_For I was sewn long ago_

_Yes, I'm the Soring Hat!_

_Now Gryffindor is for Heros_

_Only the brave and the daring_

_For Godric was quite bold_

_And he was always caring_

_Ravenclaw is for the intelligent_

_For those with a love of books_

_Rowena valued knowledge_

_And so for that she looks_

_Hufflepuff is for loyal_

_For true and ready friends_

_Helga never judged_

_And would give her best till the end_

_And Slytherin prizes ambition_

_Ancestory and cunning_

_But Salazar was a good man_

_Though his shrewdness was stunning_

_They picked students with the traits they held dear_

_And taught them all they knew_

_And then they soon crafted a sorting hat_

_So the houses would stay true_

_So here I am right here and now_

_Have a seat and let's chat_

_There's nothing you can hide_

_For I'm a mind-reading hat!_

Severus politely applauded with the others, and watched as students were called up. Black, Sirius went into Gryffindor he noted with a grimace. One by one, they were sorted until McGonagall called out "Evans, Lily!"

Lily walked up to the hat, and smiled at Severus and her sister as it was lowered over her eyes.

_Gryffindor. Gryffindor._

_Well now you are a determined one, aren't you? Any particular reason you want that house so much? No, no, I see it already. Your friends. You want to be brave for them, always there to defend, correct?_

_How did you… Well, I guess you're right. I never really thought about why I wanted Gryffindor so much before, I just…knew._

_You can be brave for them in other houses too you know. _

_But Tuney will probably be put with me because we're twins!_

_That doesn't define all. From what I've seen in your head she is in fact destined for other houses._

_Then can you put me there?_

_You and your sister are very different people. So is the boy in your memories. No, I'm afraid I cannot. You seem to be on to something with the Gryffindor though, I rarely see such a determined mind as yours. Yes, it had better be…_ GRYFFINDOR!

The last word reverberated throughout the great hall, and Lily slowly walked to the Gryffindor table, shooting her friends a thumbs up. Sirius made a show of patting the seat next to him, and she deliberately walked by to an empty seat.

"Evans, Petunia!"

Petunia walked up to the stool her sister had just vacated, and shrugged at Severus as she put on the hat.

_Hufflepuff._

_What, you too? At least you have better reasoning. Yes, of course I can see it! You read through the house descriptions carefully and chose what you thought suited you best. Since you feel such a strong loyalty to your friend and your sister you thought Hufflepuff._

_Well, yes. _

_You seem to be correct… You would do well in Gryffindor, but I fear you have too much common sense to to any "brave" things on the spur of the moment. Slytherin… No, I believe you too are correct. You'll do well in… _HUFFLEPUFF!

Petunia took off the hat and glanced at her sister, who was beaming. She turned to grin at Severus, and saw both him and Remus shooting her thumbs up. She smiled at both of them.

Soon "Lupin, Remus!" Was called and placed into Gryffindor. He began to sit by Sirius, but paused when he saw Lily beckoning. With an apologetic grin to Sirius he took the empty seat by her.

Severus nodded at him. He would much rather have her sit by Remus than that Potter.

A few children later "Potter, James" Was put into Gryffindor. He tried to sit by Lily, but both Remus and the girl on her other side wouldn't budge. He messed his hair for what must have been the twentieth time in an hour, and sat by Sirius.

Soon, "Snape, Severus!" was summoned. He stalked up and placed the hat on.

_Ah, so you are the boy I saw…_

_What?_

_Nothing, nothing. Now then, to the sorting! You could be in Slytherin quite easily, you are correct, but have you ever considered Gryffindor?_

Severus froze. _Lily…_

_I see you haven't. Well, I suppose you haven't got a coin on you? No? Ah well. Gryffindor would be a struggle for you with some of the boys that have been placed in it, and you are a bit too cunning for it… Better be… _SLYTHERIN!

Severus smiled at Lily and then at Petunia as he walked to join his new house. The Headmaster, Dumbledore, stood and gave yet another speech. Severus caught the drift of it, which was obey rules, forbidden forest is forbidden (_well gee, wouldn't have gotten that one…) _and that Hogwarts was a wonderful place. He turned to the table as food covered it, and struck up a conversation with the boy next to him.

Lily paused in her chattering with Mary McDonald and Remus as the table overflowed with food. "Oh wow! This is so cool!" She looked up and saw her sister filling a plate and Severus cautiously talking to some boy on his right. _We'll be fine._

Petunia took a sip of pumpkin juice and laughed as one of the second years told a joke. Yes, this would be a good year.

* * *

I think James was a bit... overly Jerkish in this, so if y'all have any critisizm on his character please tell! Lupin is obviously going to be the "good marauder", and if you think you saw any foreshadowing of why... well, eleven is a bit young don't you think? It could very likely happen though. Until next time readers!


	11. Chapter 11

I'm back! And school ends in three days so I'll be updating much more often. The chapter's mostly on the whole Marauder-Sev's group dynamics with poor Remus caught in the middle. I've been in the mood for fluff, so there's a bit more flirting in this one... forgive me. It seems a bit rushed to me, but if I don't get it out now I'll never post it. Also, it's exactly 2000 words! That makes it special in my mind. Thank you so much for all your reviews, and the alerts/favorites are almost as good! Please keep up the reviews, they really do make me write faster!

* * *

Lily awoke the next morning feeling strangely out of place. When she looked around, she sat bolt upright. "I'm at Hogwarts." She whispered happily. Standing quietly to avoid waking her sleeping dorm mates, she snuck off to the bathroom to get ready for the day.

Once she emerged, showered and fully dressed, the others were just waking up. Hoping to talk to Severus and Petunia before breakfast, she hurried down to the common room. Even as she stepped through the door she could hear voices calling to her, though not the ones she had hoped for.

"Oy! Evans, right?" Lily glanced at the source of the voice and groaned. There sat Potter, Black, and Remus, with a new boy cowering behind them. She waved and smiled at Remus, and he grinned and waved back.

"Morning Lily." He said quietly.

"Hey Remus!" She said, pointedly ignoring the other three boys.

James' jaw dropped. "What, I don't get a hello? A good morning hug? Nothing?"

Lily struggled, but managed to keep her composure. "You want to come with me to see if I can catch Tuney and Sev?" He shrugged and walked over to her, calling goodbye to his friends, who were yelling something-or-other at them.

As soon as the portrait closed behind them they both burst out laughing.

"Did you see Black's face?" Lily gasped.

"Sirius? What about James? He was speechless!"

Lily made a face. "I wish."

They laughed and chatted as they made their way down the stairs, before Lily finally paused. "I wonder why they didn't follow us?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Remus asked with a smirk. To Lily's surprise, he was quite good at smirking. "He wanted to stay and make sure he flirted with every girl! Why do you think we were down there that early?"

Lily shrieked with laughter, and they ran down the final steps nearing hysteria.

"Do you get the feeling we missed something?" asked a bemused voice.

Lily looked up and squealed. "Sev! Tuney!" She grabbed them in a hug, and began to laugh. "How did you sleep? Our dorms were so cool!"

They chattered on about their separate houses for a few minutes before Petunia's stomach growled. "Time for breakfast!" She announced as the other's laughed.

Lily made a face. "I don't want to, we'll have to sit at different tables…."

At this Severus and Petunia smirked. "Says who?"

Petunia continued. "I was reading through Hogwarts, A History, and it clearly says that the houses must sit together at the celebration feasts. Other than that, we're free!"

Lily gaped at her sister as Severus chuckled. "You look ridiculous."

Shaking her head, she grabbed his hand and pulled him after her as she hurried into the Great Hall. "Which table do you want to sit at?" She asked even as she headed for her own.

Severus, who had blushed faintly when she took his hand, quietly stopped her. "I doubt I would be very welcome there Lils."

"Why not? If you're worried about Potter and them I'm sure we can take them!"

He sighed, looking away. "Slytherin and Griffindor have always been rivals. Everyone from my house hates you and your housemates, and everyone from your house hates mine."

Lily shrugged. "I'm sure you're exaggerating Sev."

Petunia intervened. "He's not Lils, I've seen it myself last night at the feast. Come on, let's sit at my table."

Severus turned to Remus, who had been trailing after them. "Are you going to sit with us, or wait for your… friends, Potter and the rest?"

Remus glanced at the girls, and saw Petunia staring at him questioningly. Hurriedly he looked back to Severus with a grin. "I think they'll live without me for one morning…"

The four sat down and began to eat as the other students filed in. Ravenclaws barely gave them a second glance, and Petunia explained that the rule was common knowledge in her house. Lily swallowed her mouthful of sausage and looked at the others. "Hey, how long do you guys have until your first class?"

"Petunia and I have charms in an hour."

"We have transfiguration in an hour. Want to take some stuff outside and eat? It's a pretty day!"

They agreed, and spooned eggs and sausage onto pieces of toast. Each downed their glass of pumpkin juice, and they headed outside with the food wrapped in bundles of napkins. An hour later they split up for their classes, and Lily and Remus walked to transfiguration together.

"Oy! Remus! Evans!"

Lily groaned, and Remus froze. "Hi James."

"What are you two doing together?"

Lily turned to face the boy. "We ate breakfast together with Sev and Tuney, remember? Or is your head to bloated to take in one more thing?"

James reached a hand up to mess his hair. "Hey, relax, I remember now. So why are you still together?"

Lily gave him a look that asked if he had a mental disorder. "We're walking to transfiguration, same as you." She said slowly.

"Oh. Right!" He flashed her a grin. "Well I can take it from here Remus, thanks for keeping an eye on her!" He said, offering her his arm.

Lily leaned over and made retching noises, much to Remus' not very well hidden amusement. She began to walk quickly and he followed, sending an apologetic glance back at a shocked James.

The separated for Transfiguration, Lily choosing to sit by Mary while Remus returned to James and Sirius. After Transfiguration came double potions with the slytherins, and Lily instantly slid into a seat next to Severus. "Hi!" She whispered.

"Hey!" He whispered back.

Professor Slughorn came bouncing in and started up a speech on potions class. Quickly Lily pulled out a piece of parchment and scribbled on it before passing it to Severus.

-So how did Charms go?

He raised his eyebrow, and she chuckled at how much he resembled a teacher scolding a student.

_-Passing notes in class? Shame on you Lily._

She rolled her eyes at him.

-Oh hush. So?

_-It went well. I take it Remus has gone back to his friends?_

Lily turned and glanced at the boy in question, who was doing his best to be invisible as Potter and Black acted like morons.

-I'm not sure. 

_-I'm surprised he was willing to eat breakfast with us in the first place. Potter seems to keep a close eye on people that are "his"._

Lily covered her mouth to hide her laughter.

-You make him seem like you-know-who! Honestly Sev… Think we'll do anything in this lesson?

_-Based on where his speech is at now? I'd say the answer is no._

-Well at least you're here; otherwise I'd die of boredom. Sit by me in Defense?

_-I thought we had a free period next?_

-We do. Then lunch. Sit by me there too?

Severus smiled at the paper.

_-I'll sit by you._

-Yay!

Severus used his hair to hide the light blush the last note caused, and began to write his reply when something landed on his desk.

**-Sit by me at lunch? You know you want to. –JP**

Severus stared at the note in disgust before realizing it must have been meant for Lily. Smirking, he wrote his answer.

_-As much as I'd enjoy that Potter, I'm afraid Lily may get jealous if I abandon her to sit with you. If you had asked just a minute earlier I could have agreed, but I just promised her I'd sit by her for the rest of the day. –SS_

**-What the hell Snape?**

_-Well all right, I wouldn't enjoy it, but when your note landed in front of me I thought I should try and be nice._

_**-**_**That note was for Evans!**

Snape smoothed the paper, which was becoming increasingly wrinkled, and allowed Lily to read over the conversation.

-You are such a prat Potter! Leave Severus and me alone!

She threw the note at Potter with a glare, and Snape sneered at the boy. Slughorn clapped his hands loudly and announced that the lesson was over, and students poured out of the room happily.

"Let's find Tuney and go to the library!" Lily said, grabbing Severus' hand.

Remus, who had been standing behind them overheard and smiled. "Mind if I come?"

"You're welcome to come unless you're worried what Potter may think."

He shrugged and followed them, trailing behind a bit.

"LILY! SEV!" A voice from a sea of yellow called. "OVER HERE!"

They found Petunia and went to the library, where they spent most of the time getting to know Remus. He made a nice addition to their group, and the girls quickly accepted him. Severus remained leery, but talked and laughed along with the others. When free period ended, they walked down to lunch together before they were stopped once again by a shout.

"OY! Remus! You ditching us for them?"

Remus looked over to saw James and Sirius waving at him, and sighed. "I'd better go…"

He ran off as they called goodbye, and Severus, Lily, and Petunia sat down to eat. The rest of the day passed in a blur, and before they could blink they were sitting in the same places for dinner.

"Well, what was your favorite class?" Asked Severus, raising an eyebrow at the girls.

"Transfiguration!" Petunia said, beaming.

"Potions seems fun, but Charms was the best today." Lily said, shaking her head at her sister.

"Defense was obviously better." Severus said with a sigh.

"Well that's perfect!" Petunia said, clapping her hands. When the others gave her questioning looks she explained. "Remus told me he's really good at History, though he doesn't really like it, and this way we have someone who likes everything if we do our homework together!"

They burst out laughing, and Lily put her arms around the other two.

"This is going to be a great year, I just know it!" Petunia announced.

* * *

Meanwhile, Remus was assuring James for the hundredth time that he wasn't going over to the "dark side."

"So did Evans talk about me any?" Asked James.

"No, she didn't. And you've asked me that one before."

Sirius leaned over. "Well here's a new one, did Evans ask about me?" When James looked at him in shock he held up his hands. "The brunette, James, not the ginger."

Remus had stiffened slightly, but shrugged and said "Sorry mate, not a word. We talked about other things."

"Well tomorrow bring us up!" James said, waving his wands as he spoke.

"Yeah, you can be our… Wingman! That's the word! Make 'em see that we're their type." Sirius added.

Remus laughed. "I really don't think either of you are either of their types."

"Oh? What is their type then?"

'Lily's type seems to be Severus, and I don't know Petunia's but I'm hoping to find out.' He said to himself. Out loud, he replied with "Oh… I don't know… guys who take school seriously for one."

"Hey! I take school seriously!" James said, and Sirius almost fell off his bench laughing.

"Well I still say Remus should set us up." He said once he recovered.

"Yeah, keep hanging out with them Remus! Maybe with you we can lure them away from Snivellus…"

"And into our waiting arms." The two high fived eachother, and Remus rolled his eyes. At least he had found a way to juggle his two groups of friends. If he could he would have dropped James and Sirius, but he didn't need to make enimies out of his dorm mates. He needed them to be on his side in case anyone ever found out… But no, it was best not to think about that now. He looked across the tables and saw Lily put her arms around Severus and Petunia, and smiled as Severus looked away and grumbled and Petunia grinned and flipped her hair out of her face.

"This is going to be a good year, I really think it is." He whispered to himself.

* * *

So there you have it! I entered this into a Tumblr thing about Snape so now I'm a proud member of "Snape's army", a deal full of pictures and fics and what-not about everyones favorite potions master. Have any ideas about the rest of this or anything? Review!


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